Matthew McDowell was a steamboat owner and builder associated with the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet

Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet

The Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet was a large number of private transportation companies running smaller passenger and freight boats on Puget Sound and nearby waterways and rivers. This large group of steamers and sternwheelers plied the waters of Puget Sound, stopping at every waterfront dock...

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Background

McDowell was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and left home at age 15 to work as a coal passer for steamers of the Anchor Line. He had three sons and one daughter, all of whom were associated with his steamboat business. His three Albert Robert and John served as engineers and eventually all qualified as masters. His daughter Mary acted as purser. She later married Arthur Thompson, who became a well-known Puget Sound pilot.

McDowell's fleet was originally based in Tacoma near the smelter. He often slept on one of his boats, especially if he was to be its captain the following morning. Once a vessel he was sleeping in was nearly run down by a large steamer, so in 1905 Captain McDowell bought 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) of land on Browns Point.

House and dock near Browns Point Lighthouse

McDowell built a house and dock near the lighthouse. He called his new home Caledonia, after the poetic name for Scotland. His boats served landings Dumas Bay, Lakota, Adelaide, Redondo, Des Moines, Zenith, Maury, Portage, Chautauqua, Vashon Island

Vashon Island

Vashon is a census-designated place in King County, Washington, United States. It covers an island alternately called Vashon Island or Vashon-Maury Island, the largest island in Puget Sound south of Admiralty Inlet. The population was 10,624 at the 2010 census. At , it is about 60 percent larger...

, Tacoma and Seattle. As the permanent population and the summer vacationers increased, his business thrived. He later built a dance hall next to his dock, and transported patrons to it on the D fleet steamers.

Operation of Quickstep

In early 1890s, McDowell operated the propeller steamer Quickstep

Quickstep (steamboat)

Quickstep was a steamboat that operated from 1877 to 1897 in coastal, inland waters and rivers of the Pacific Northwest. This vessel should not be confused with a number of other vessels with the same name, some of which operated in the same area about the same time.- Career:Quickstep was built at...

 (built at Astoria in 1877) as a towboat on Puget Sound.

First boat

In 1897, McDowell built his first boat. Defiance (I), at Caledonia, near Tacoma. She was 60.5 long and rated at 85 tons. Defiance (I) was the first of six steamboats launched by Captain McDowell, all beginning with the letter “D” and all built at the Crawford and Reid yard. In each case, Captain McDowell took personal charge of the construction.

The D Fleet

Boats built or reconstructed by Captain McDowell for his “D Fleet” included

• Defiance (I)
• Dove (ex-Typhoon
  Dove (steamboat)
  The steamboat Dove operated in the late 1890s and early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet and also for a time on Grays Harbor. She was later converted into a tug. The Dove should not be confused with the Virginia III .-Construction:Dove was originally built in 1889 in Portland,...
  
  , built 1889, and later reconstructed following acquisition by Capt. McDowell;
• Dauntless
  Dauntless (steamboat)
  The steamboat Dauntless operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.- Career :Dauntless was built in 1899 by Matthew McDowell at Tacoma to replace the Defiance on the Seattle-Tacoma-East Pass run...
  
  , built 1899,
• Defiance (II)
  Defiance (steamboat)
  The steamboat Defiance operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. In later years this vessel was called Kingston.-Career:...
  
  , built 1901
• Daring, later Kingston
  Daring (steamboat)
  The steamboat Daring operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet and was later converted into a tug.-Construction:...
  
  , built 1909
• Dart
  Dart (steamboat)
  The steamboat Dart operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.-Career:Dart was built in 1911 by Matthew McDowell at Tacoma for his steamboat line’s Seattle-Tacoma-East Pass run...
  
  , built 1911
• Daily (later Island Princess and ferry Cy Peck
  Island Princess (steamboat)
  The steamboat Daily operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. In later years, Daily was renamed Island Princess and later Cy Peck.-Construction:...
  
  , built 1912

The D Fleet also is reported to have operated Monticello

Monticello 2 (steamboat)

The steamboat Monticello operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. The vessel went through several reconstructions and remained in service until 1962, when she was lost in Alaska waters. Her later names were Penaco and Sea Venture...

(built 1906).

Later years

Ready sources do not give much information on the later days of Captain McDowell. The webpage of a local historical society states that Captain McDowell anticipated a decline in passenger business as the demand grew for automobile ferries, and began selling his fleet in 1918 while steamers were still in demand, retiring completely from the steamer service in August 1919. It is known that he lived to at least the age of 94 years. He died in Tacoma in December, 1944.