El Capitan (ferry)

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C.P.R.R. ferry boat 'El Capitan', at the Terminus, by Thomas Houseworth & Co..jpg
El Capitan was the largest ferry on San Francisco Bay when built in 1868
History
NameEl Capitan
Owner
Operator
Port of registrySan Francisco,  USA
BuilderPatrick Tiernan, San Francisco
Completed1868
In service1868-1925
Out of service1925
IdentificationOfficial Number: 8230
General characteristics
Class and typepassenger ferry
Tonnage982
Displacement669
Length194 ft (59 m)
Beam33.6 ft (10.2 m)
Depth14.5 ft (4.4 m)
Installed powerTotal 250 hp from 4 fire tube boilers
Propulsionside wheels powered by a vertical beam engine steam engine
Crew14
Notes[1]

El Capitan was a side-wheel steam-powered passenger ferry operated on San Francisco Bay. The ferry was built for the Central Pacific Railroad in 1868 in anticipation of completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad. The ferry offered connecting service to San Francisco for train passengers arriving in Oakland, California. El Capitan collided with the Central Pacific ferry Alameda in dense fog on 20 February 1879. The hull flooded from a hole forward of the port side paddle box, and the ferry sank onto a mud bar. She was towed to a shipyard for repair the following day. El Capitan spent its last decade crossing the Carquinez Strait between Crockett and Vallejo before being retired in 1925.[2]

References[]

  1. ^ Ford, Robert S. Red Trains in the East Bay (1977) Interurbans Publications ISBN 0-916374-27-0 pp.343&345
  2. ^ Ford, Robert S. Red Trains in the East Bay (1977) Interurbans Publications ISBN 0-916374-27-0 pp.27,63-64&133
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