''Hercules'' is a 1907-built steam

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

that is now preserved at the

San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park The San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park is located in San Francisco, California, United States. The park includes a fleet of historic vessels, a visitor center, a maritime museum, and a library/research facility. Formerly referred to ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

History

''Hercules'' was built in 1907 by John H. Dialogue and Sons, of Camden,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. She was built for the Shipowners' and Merchants' Tugboat Company of

, as part of their Red Stack Fleet (a part of today's Crowley Maritime Corporation). After completion, ''Hercules'' was sailed to San Francisco via the

Straits of Magellan The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natural ...

with her sister ship, '' Goliah'', in tow. For the first part of her life, ''Hercules'' was an oceangoing tug. Because of the prevailing northwest winds,

sailing ships A sailing ship is a sea-going vessel that uses sails mounted on Mast (sailing), masts to harness the power of wind and propel the vessel. There is a variety of sail plans that propel sailing ships, employing Square rig, square-rigged or Fore-an ...

often employed ''Hercules'' and her sisters on journeys north up the coast from San Francisco. For example, in 1916, ''Hercules'' towed to

Port Townsend, Washington Port Townsend is a city on the Quimper Peninsula in Jefferson County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,148 at the 2020 United States Census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County. In addition ...

. On return trips back down the coast, ''Hercules'' often towed

log raft Timber rafting is a method of transporting felled tree trunks by tying them together to make rafts, which are then drifted or pulled downriver, or across a lake or other body of water. It is arguably, after log driving, the second cheapest mea ...

s of

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

timber, to

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

mills. At other times, ''Hercules'' was employed towing

barges A barge is typically a flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and marine water environments. The first modern barges were pull ...

to other ports on the West Coast and to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, and in transporting equipment for the construction of the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...

. In 1924, ''Hercules'' was acquired by the

Western Pacific Railroad The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California. WP's Feather River Route dire ...

. For her new owners, she worked shuttling railroad car floats across

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay (Chochenyo language, Chochenyo: 'ommu) is a large tidal estuary in the United States, U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, California, San ...

from

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

and

Alameda An alameda is a street or path lined with trees () and may refer to: Places Canada * Alameda, Saskatchewan, town in Saskatchewan ** Grant Devine Dam, formerly ''Alameda Dam'', a dam and reservoir in southern Saskatchewan Chile * Alameda (Santi ...

to San Francisco. In 1947, she and the tugboat ''Monarch'' were given the task of towing the hulk of the battleship to San Francisco Bay to be scrapped. However, 500 miles from Hawaii, they were struck by a powerful storm and the ''Oklahoma'' began taking on water and sinking, threatening to drag the two tugs along with her. While the ''Monarch'' managed to release her lines, ''Hercules'' could not get free until the last moment, narrowly avoiding being dragged into the deep by the ''Oklahoma.'' Afterwards, she returned to shuttling car floats and worked in this role until 1957, when she was replaced by the diesel-powered

train ferry A train ferry is a ship (ferry) designed to carry Railroad car, railway vehicles, as well as their cargoes and passengers. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with Track (rail transport), railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the f ...

. ''Hercules'' was kept in a stand-by role to the new ferry until 1961. The California State Park Foundation acquired ''Hercules'' in 1975, and the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

took over her restoration in 1977. In 1986 she was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

. She is now one of the exhibits of the

and is to be found moored at the park's Hyde Street Pier.

Image gallery

File:Hercules tug engine.agr.jpg, Triple expansion steam engine File:Hercules towing machine.agr.jpg, Towing machine File:STARBOARD HULL VIEW FROM ASTEARN. - Steam Tug HERCULES, Hyde Street Pier, San Francisco, San Francisco County, CA HAER CAL,38-SANFRA,201-38.tif, In dry dock File:Crew's mess, deck house, forward. From left to right, volunteers Larry Boucher and Maggie Lindley, deckhand Bruce Vanvick, and volunteer Harry Morgan. - Steam Tug HERCULES, HAER CAL,38-SANFRA,201-19.tif, Crew's mess File:Interior of wheelhouse looking forward. - Steam Tug HERCULES, Hyde Street Pier, San Francisco, San Francisco County, CA HAER CAL,38-SANFRA,201-18.tif, Wheelhouse

References

Sources

* * * **

External links

* * {{Authority control 1907 ships Tugboats of the United States San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park Museum ships in San Francisco Western Pacific Railroad steam tugs Historic American Engineering Record in San Francisco National Historic Landmarks in the San Francisco Bay Area Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Francisco Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco Rail transportation in Oakland, California Ships built by Dialogue & Company