In November of 1930, the Washington Navigation Co. (WNC) ferry "Relief," shown above docked at Gig Harbor, was one of several ferries owned by the company plying the waters of the Puget Sound. She had been launched on July 17, 1930, at Skansie Shipbuilding in Gig Harbor. The "Relief" was 72-feet long with a 32-foot beam and 85 hp diesel engine. Befitting her name, she was used as a relief ship when other ferries were laid up for repairs. The Washington Navigation Co. was founded by Mitchell Skansie of Skansie Shipbuilding around 1926. When Pierce County could no longer afford to run its own ferry service to Gig Harbor, the service was contracted out to WNC. By the 1930's, the company had several ferries running on many routes in the South Sound. The company was almost ruined by the Great Depression and the opening of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940. When the bridge collapsed a scant seven months after construction, the ferry runs were restored and WNC began a bidding war with Puget Sound Navigation Co. for state ferry contracts. (Neal & Janus "Puget Sound Ferries"; TNT 7-17-30, p. 5-article) G66.1-089
Ferries--1930-1940; Washington Navigation Co. (Gig Harbor);