The MV ''Tourist No. 2'' was a 1924 wooden-hulled car ferry that served passengers all over the

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 ...

. Originally, it took passengers across the Columbia River, with a dock in

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a Port, port city in and the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the ...

. It was undergoing restoration in Astoria until it sunk in 2022. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, in 1997, as the ''Tourist II''.

History

With the exception of the Second World War, from 1924 to 1966, MV ''Tourist No. 2'' was in service on the Astoria–Megler Ferry route on the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

. Following the bombing of

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

in 1941, the US Army purchased the vessel as the FB or JMP 535 to lay mines at the mouth of the river. At the end of the war, it returned to ferry service on the Columbia. The ferry was moved from Astoria, Oregon to

Pierce County, Washington Pierce County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 921,130, up from 795,225 in 2010, making it the second-most populous ...

, in 1967 and renamed the ''Islander of Pierce County''. It worked on

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...

for many years, but eventually, its wooden-hull design was overshadowed by vessels with more modern steel-hull designs. MV Kirkland 01

In 1996, new private owners Argosy Cruises bought the vessel and renamed it ''Kirkland''. They refurbished it, adding two full-service bars, a galley, and 12-foot floor-to-ceiling windows, making the main deck unique among vessels in the Northwest. The exterior styling, deck plan, and interior and general arrangement were provided by designer Jonathan Quinn Barnett, of Seattle. The vessel is listed on the Washington Historic Register and the National Register of Historic Places. Early morning on August 28, 2010, the vessel caught fire while docked at its Kirkland, Washington pier. The fire was confined to the engine room. Firefighters were quoted as saying everything below deck was "toast". The boat was moved from Lake Washington during the morning of August 31, 2010, by the tug ''Dixie'', part of the Fremont Tug Company. The vessel was sold to Christian Lint in 2010 after Argosy Cruise Lines concluded that it was not economical to repair the fire damage. Lint moored the vessel in Bremerton and used it for special events. In 2016, Lint sold the vessel to the Astoria Ferry Group, and returned it to Astoria on August 1. By 2017, restoration of the vessel was underway. As of 2019, restoration was continuing. ''Tourist No. 2'' partially sank in the Columbia River in Astoria where it was moored and for sale on July 28, 2022. It was demolished ''in situ'' and removed in September 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkland Ferries of Washington (state) National Register of Historic Places in Kirkland, Washington Cruise ships of the United States Ships built in Astoria, Oregon Ferries of Oregon 1924 ships Maritime incidents in 2010 Maritime incidents in 2022 Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state)