Beaver Island Boat Company announces bids for a proposed new ferry (1962)

Summary

The Beaver Island Boat Company announced that it would open bids on February 10, 1962, for a proposed new ferry. The Beaver Beacon says the design by naval architect Hartell would be 94 feet long, have a 27-foot beam and twin 1,000-horsepower engines, and carry 150 passengers and 12 cars. Radar and ship-to-shore telephones were proposed, with a projected July 1 start on the Charlevoix–Beaver route.

The report contrasts the proposal with the Emerald Isle, whose permitted capacity it gives as 113 passengers and eight cars. It also mentions a possible Petoskey–Beaver service but says no decision had been made about continuing the Emerald Isle or the new boat’s final name and schedule.

The March 1962 Beaver Beacon records the next stage: the Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Corporation’s $187,000 bid was accepted, construction was to begin immediately, and the new vessel was named the Beaver Islander. The report planned its first Charlevoix–Beaver run for June 23. This outcome is modeled separately from the February proposal because the two notices preserve different stages of the project.

Evidence and limits

The February notice is an announcement of a proposed design and bidding process. The March notice establishes an accepted bid, named builder, announced construction start, and planned June 23 service, but it does not by itself establish launch, completion, christening, or whether every proposed dimension and capacity was realized. The later August 1962 report supplies the vessel’s appearance, christening, and service start.