The Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority, referred to coloquially as The Steamship Authority or simply the SSA, is the statutory regulatory body for all ferry operations to and from the Islands from the Massachusetts mainland, as well as being an operator of ferry service from the mainland Cape Cod

Cape Cod

Cape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the Cape, is a cape in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States...

 to the islands of Martha's Vineyard

Martha's Vineyard

Martha's Vineyard is an island located south of Cape Cod in Massachusetts, known for being an affluent summer colony....

 and Nantucket, and the only ferry operator to carry automobiles to the island. The Authority also operates several freight vessels, thus serving as the main link for shipping any commercial goods to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket that are not transported by air

Cape Air

Hyannis Air Service, Inc., operating as Cape Air, is an airline headquartered at Barnstable Municipal Airport in Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States. It operates scheduled passenger services in the Northeast, Florida, the Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic States, Midwest, and Micronesia...

.

History

The present Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority was formed from the New Bedford, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket Steamboat Co., which in turn was a consolidation of earlier companies dating to the early 19th century, just before the railroad arrived. Early steamers included the Marco Bozzaris, Telegraph, Massachusetts, George Law, Naushon, Helen Augusta, Metacomet (1854), Canonicus (1856), Eagle's Wing (1854–1861), Monohansett

Monohansett (steamboat)

The Monohansett was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the end of the nineteenth century. It was named after Monohansett Island, a tiny twelve-acre island off Naushon.-Construction:...

, River Queen

River Queen (steamboat)

The River Queen was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the late 19th century. It is closely associated with President Abraham Lincoln and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant.-Construction:...

, Island Home

Island Home (steamboat)

The Island Home was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the second half of the nineteenth century.-Nantucket Ferry Service:...

, Martha's Vineyard

Martha's Vineyard (steamboat)

The Martha's Vineyard was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the second half of the nineteenth century.It was built in 1871 in Brooklyn, NY...

, Nantucket

Nantucket (steamboat)

The Nantucket was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century...

, Gay Head

Gay Head (steamboat)

The Gay Head was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth...

, Uncatena

Uncatena (steamboat)

The Uncatena was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the beginning of the twentieth century....

, Sankaty

Sankaty (steamboat)

The Sankaty was a propeller-driven steamer that served as a ferry to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts; in Rockland, Maine; Stamford, Connecticut and Oyster Bay, Long Island; Staten Island, New York; Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island and Caribou, Nova Scotia; and served as a...

, Nobska, New Bedford, Naushon, Mercury, and Hackensack. The steamship Islander retired in 2007.

In 2007, it was reported that the Steamship Authority ferries were dumping sewage into Nantucket Sound, along with other seafaring vessels. But in fact, the SSA has sewage treatment facilities on every vessel, so that discharges contain only "grey" water, NOT raw sewage. From 2011 forward the SSA will be converting its vessels with holding tanks for all sewage effluent, to be discharged into new pumping facilities at each port.

Service to Martha's Vineyard

Frequent passenger and auto ferry service is operated to the Martha's Vineyard towns of Vineyard Haven year round, and to Oak Bluffs from Memorial Day

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...

 to Labor Day

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

 from the mainland terminal in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Sailing time is approximately 45 minutes to both Vineyard Haven and Oak Bluffs. In early 2001, the SSA purchased the 130-foot M/V Schamonchi, along with the New Bedford-Martha's Vineyard route. They operated passenger-only service on this route until 2003, and generated operating losses of about $800,000 per year in the three years that it operated the route. The ferry has since been sold, and a year-round high-speed catamaran service is now operated between New Bedford and Vineyard Haven and seasonally to Oak Bluffs by The New England Fast Ferry Company

Service to Nantucket

Year round passenger and auto ferry, as well as freight service is operated to Nantucket from the mainland terminal in Hyannis

Hyannis

Hyannis may refer to a location in the United States:* Hyannis, Massachusetts* Hyannisport, Massachusetts* Hyannis, Nebraska...

, Massachusetts. Sailing time to Nantucket takes approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes. A one hour, passenger only catamaran

Catamaran

A catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...

 service, is operated with the new (2006) MV Iyanough from mid April through late December from Hyannis to Nantucket.

Massachusetts regulatory body

In addition to running ferry service, the Steamship Authority (hence the name) also regulates many commercial aspects of ferry operations to and from the Islands, those that are not regulated by the US Coast Guard. All scheduled passenger ferry operations to and from the Islands must, by law, be approved by the Steamship Authority. This generally precludes any ferry service that would directly compete with the Steamship Authority, essentially giving it a legal monopoly

Legal monopoly

A legal monopoly, statutory monopoly, or de jure monopoly is a monopoly that is protected by law from competition. A statutory monopoly may take the form of a government monopoly where the state owns the particular means of production or government-granted monopoly where a private interest is...

 on all auto ferry service to the Islands. However, approval has been granted to other companies to operate smaller passenger ferry operations to the islands, these include Freedom Cruises to Nantucket, and the New England Fast Ferry and the Pied Piper Edgartown Ferry to Martha's Vineyard. In addition, Hy-Line Cruises (out of Hyannis to both Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard and between the two islands) and the Island Queen (out of Falmouth to the Vineyard) are allowed to provide certain services as grandfathered carriers due to their existence prior to the SSA's creation. Additional services provided by Hy-Line are licensed by the SSA. Finally, seasonal ferries from Provincetown to Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 and Provincetown to Plymouth are also permitted to operate as they do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Authority.

Fleet

The Authority currently operates nine vessels. Four of these are auto/passenger ferries featuring roll-on/roll-off ramps for cars traveling to the islands, as well as climate-controlled seating and a bar and concession stand for passengers. The fifth vessel, the M/V Iyanough (built in 2007) is a passenger-only catamaran

Catamaran

A catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...

 operating fast ferry (35-knot) one-hour service between Hyannis and Nantucket.
- M/V Island Home, built in 2007
- M/V Iyanough, built in 2007
- M/V Martha's Vineyard, built in 1993
- M/V Eagle, built in 1987
- M/V Nantucket, built in 1974

Four of the other ferries are open-top roll-on/roll-off ferries, primarily for larger trucks and freight. However, ordinary passengers taking vehicles to the islands are usually permitted to travel on them, space permitting.
- M/V Katama, built in 1981, acquired by SSA in 1988
- M/V Gay Head
- M/V Sankaty, built in 1981, acquired by SSA in 1994
- M/V Governor, built in 1954, acquired by SSA in 1998

Steamship Authority powered vessels serving Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket
Vessel	Island Service Began	Island Service Ended	Notes
Eagle	1818	1818
Connecticut	1824	1828
Hamilton	1828	1828
Marco Bozzaris	1829	1832
Telegraph	1832	1857	aka Nebraska
Massachusetts	1842	1858
Naushon	1846	1848	Renamed News Boy after sale.
Osceola	1848
Eagle's Wing	1854	1861
Metacomet	1854	1857
Island Home Island Home (steamboat) The Island Home was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the second half of the nineteenth century.-Nantucket Ferry Service:...	1855	c. 1895
Jersey Blue	1856	1857
Monohansett Monohansett (steamboat) The Monohansett was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the end of the nineteenth century. It was named after Monohansett Island, a tiny twelve-acre island off Naushon.-Construction:...	1862	c. 1902
Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard (steamboat) The Martha's Vineyard was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the second half of the nineteenth century.It was built in 1871 in Brooklyn, NY...	1871	c. 1920
River Queen River Queen (steamboat) The River Queen was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the late 19th century. It is closely associated with President Abraham Lincoln and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant.-Construction:...	1871	1893
Island Belle	1876		Renamed Coskata
Nantucket Nantucket (steamboat) The Nantucket was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century...	1886	after 1905
Gay Head Gay Head (steamboat) The Gay Head was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket during the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth...	1891	1924
Uncatena Uncatena (steamboat) The Uncatena was a sidewheel steamer operating as a ferry serving the island of Martha's Vineyard during the beginning of the twentieth century....	1902	1928	Last sidewheeler.
Sankaty Sankaty (steamboat) The Sankaty was a propeller-driven steamer that served as a ferry to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts; in Rockland, Maine; Stamford, Connecticut and Oyster Bay, Long Island; Staten Island, New York; Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island and Caribou, Nova Scotia; and served as a...	1911	1924	Renamed Charles A. Dunning after sale.
Islander	1923	1947	Renamed Martha's Vineyard
Nobska Nobska (steamship) The Nobska was a steamship that plied the waters of Nantucket sound as part of The Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority's fleet between 1925 and 1973 as a ferry. She was eventually scrapped in 2006 despite efforts to save her...	1925	c. 1974	Renamed Nantucket, then Nobska.
New Bedford	1928	1942	Participated in Atlantic Convoys during WWII
Nantucket	1928
Naushon	1929	1942	Participated in Atlantic Convoys during WWII
Mercury
Gay Head (LSM 286)	1947
Hackensack	1947	c. 1951	First double-ender. Renamed Islander.
M/V Islander	1950	2007	First diesel.
	1957	1987	Renamed Naushon
Uncatena	1965	1993
Auriga	1973	c. 1989
M/V Nantucket	1974	Present
Eagle	1987	Present
M/V Katama	1988	Present
Gay Head	1989	Present
Martha's Vineyard	1993	Present
Sankaty	1994	Present
M/V Governor	1998	Present	Former Governor's Island ferry
Flying Cloud	2000	2007	Catamaran Catamaran A catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...  Fast Ferry, Nicknamed the "Black Cloud" because of engine problems; sold in Venezuela
M/V Island Home	2007	Present
M/V Iyanough	2007	Present	Catamaran Fast Ferry, Named after Hyannis sachem Sachem A sachem[p] or sagamore is a paramount chief among the Algonquians or other northeast American tribes. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms from different Eastern Algonquian languages...  Iyannough Iyannough Iyannough was a Native American sachem and leader of the Mattachiest tribe of Cummaquid in the area of what is now Barnstable, Massachusetts...

External links

• Steamship Authority home page