During the extensive refurbishment at Lake Union Drydock, Pacific Fishermen Shipyard helped out by donating a portion of their labor and providing the experienced old time caulker and a supply of oakum and pitch required to seal the planks and render the vessel watertight. Pacific Fishermen was also instrumental in arranging the donation of the solid brass windows for the main cargo deck from Cruise West, which were found in the shipyard’s loft from the refurbished SPIRIT OF 98.
The Steamer VIRGINIA V is a 125-foot steam-powered passenger vessel, built in 1921 at Maplewood, Pierce County, Washington and was launched on March 9, 1922. She originally provided passenger and freight service between Seattle and Tacoma for small communities along Colvos Passage as many other privately owned vessels of Puget Sound’s “Mosquito Fleet”,the precursor to the Washington State Ferry system
VIRGINIA V is the sole steam-powered survivor of the “Mosquito Fleet”, and is one of only two operating steam-powered, wooden-hull passenger ships surviving in the United States today. VIRGINIA V was recognized as a National Historic Landmark on October 5, 1992.