|
History...
 The W.T. PRESTON was the last sternwheeler to work in
Puget Sound and is one of only two snagboats remaining in the
contiguous United States. Her crews removed navigational hazards from
the bays and harbors of the Sound and from its tributary rivers.
The first settlements in the heavily timbered areas of Washington were
located along rivers, which served as the region’s highways. On some
of these rivers, snags threatened navigation and if not removed grew
into larger logjams blocking passage of the boats. Shifting sand bars,
particularly in delta areas, also obstructed navigation. In response
to these conditions, Congress in 1882 allocated $20,000 for the
construction of a snagboat to free the rivers from navigational
hazards.
The SKAGIT was the first of three steam-powered snagboats built to
maintain the rivers, serving from 1885 to1914, when she was replaced
by the SWINOMISH. In turn, the SWINOMISH was succeeded in 1929 by the
wooden-hulled W.T. PRESTON, named in honor of a distinguished civilian
engineer who worked for the Seattle District Army Corps of Engineers.
The PRESTON operated as far north as Blaine and south to Olympia and
Shelton. She worked 11 months out of the year, retrieving thousands of
snags, piles, floats and other debris, including a damaged airplane,
fish boats, derelict scows, and houseboats. In addition to her
snagging chores, she was used as a pile driver and icebreaker, and
dredged about 3500 cubic yards of material in an average year.
By the 1960s, the PRESTON’s responsibilities were changing. As more
and more freight was carried by truck and rail, the importance of
keeping the Sound’s tributaries open to commercial navigation fell
off. At the same time, recreational boating increased on Puget Sound,
necessitating more maintenance of these wider waters. In these
circumstances, the W.T. PRESTON as a shallow-draft river vessel found
itself somewhat vulnerable. One noted storm with a prevailing 40-knot
wind blew the boat sideways during a hair-raising passage to Port
Townsend.
But the PRESTON soldiered on, until the costs to operate and maintain
the snagboat became prohibitive. W.T. PRESTON and
the City of Anacortes...
The W.T. PRESTON was placed on the National Register for Historic Places in 1979. In 1981,
the Corps retired her from duty and solicited proposals to preserve
the snagboat.
Impressed with the plan offered by the city of Anacortes, the Corps
transferred title to Anacortes in March 1983. The city allocated
$40,000 to prepare a waterfront site for the PRESTON beside its old
Burlington Northern Railroad Depot.
After being towed to Anacortes, the PRESTON was taken out of the water
and on June 22, 1983, hauled overland to her new resting site. She was
designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989, serving as an
important reminder of Puget Sound maritime and riverine history.
The W.T. PRESTON SNAGBOAT HERITAGE CENTER...
 As
part of the city’s commitment to care for the W.T. PRESTON, the
Snagboat Heritage Center opened in April 2005, culminating a dream
that began in 1999. The center includes artifacts, models, graphic
displays and historical text all related to the three snagboats that
maintained the area’s navigable rivers, as well as an ADA-access ramp
to the W.T. PRESTON.
(360) 299-1984. |
