{{Infobox ship |section1={{Infobox ship/image |image=197706 Mukilteo Ferry Kulshan 1 b.jpg |image_caption='''MV ''Kulshan''''' }}
|section2={{Infobox ship/career |hide_header= |name=*1954–1970: ''Crown City'' *1970–1982: ''Kulshan'' *1982-26 July 1997: ''Governor'' *1997–Present: {{MV|Governor||2}} |owner=*1954–1970: [[San Diego and Coronado Ferry Company]] *1970–1982: [[Washington State Ferries]] *1982-26 July 1997: [[United States Coast Guard]] *1997–Present: [[Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority]] |operator=1970–1982: [[Washington State Ferries]] |registry=Seattle, {{flag|USA}} |route=Clinton-Mukilteo |ordered= |original_cost= |yard_number=267527 |way_number= |laid_down= |launched=Oakland, California |completed=*Built: 1954 *Refit: 1970 |christened=1970 |acquired=1970 |maiden_voyage= |in_service=1954 |out_of_service=1982 |identification=*{{IMO Number|8835308}} *Official Number: 267527 *[[Maritime call sign|Call sign]]: WF6787 |notes=Name Translation: From the [[Lummi dialect|Lummi]]/[[Nooksack (tribe)|Nooksack]] language – ''Great White Watcher''; the native name for [[Mount Baker]] }}
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics |hide_header= |header_caption= |class= |tonnage=678 |displacement= |length={{convert|242|ft|1.5|in|m|0|abbr=on}} |beam={{convert|65|ft|1.5|in|m|1|abbr=on}} |draft={{convert|12|ft|9|in|m|1|abbr=on}} |depth= |decks= |deck_clearance={{convert|16|ft|0|in|m|1|abbr=on}} |power=Total 1,200 hp from 2 x [[Diesel-Electric]] engines |propulsion= |speed={{convert|13|kn|km/h|0|lk=in|abbr=on}} |capacity=*350 passengers *59 vehicles (max 24 commercial) |crew= |notes= }} }} '''MV ''Kulshan''''' was a passenger ferry operated by the [[Washington State Ferries|Washington State ferry system]] on [[Puget Sound]] from 1970 to 1982.
==Beginnings== The ''Kulshan'' started her maritime career as the [[MV Crown City|MV ''Crown City'']] in [[Oakland, California]] in 1954. Purchased by the [[San Diego and Coronado Ferry Company]], the ''Kulshan''/''Crown City'' served as a passenger ferry there until the San Diego-Coronado bridge was completed in 1969. Other ferries running between [[San Diego, California|San Diego]] and [[Coronado, California|Coronado]] alongside her were the [[MV San Diego|MV ''San Diego'']], the [[MV Coronado II|MV ''Coronado II'']], the [[MV Silver Strand|MV ''Silver Strand'']], and the [[MV North Island|MV ''North Island'']].
==The ugliest, most despised ferry in Puget Sound== Following her decommissioning by the [[San Diego and Coronado Ferry Company]], the vessel was purchased by the [[Washington State Ferries|Washington State Ferry]] system in 1969,<ref>{{cite news |last=Page |first=Don |date=April 16, 1969 |title=Topless Ferry Joins Fleet |page=27 |work=[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]]}}</ref> where she was re-christened the '''MV ''Kulshan'''''. After being refitted with new Washington State Ferries livery, the ''Kulshan'' was placed on the [[Mukilteo, Washington|Mukilteo]]-[[Clinton, Washington|Clinton]] two-mile run. Alongside the ''Kulshan'', other ferries operating on the route were the [[MV Olympic|MV ''Olympic'']] and [[MV Rhododendron|MV ''Rhododendron'']] from 1970 to 1972. Occasionally, the [[MV Chetzemoka|MV ''Chetzemoka'']] was added as a fourth ferry on the run. In 1973, the [[MV Olympic|''Olympic'']] was taken off the route and replaced with the [[MV Vashon|''Vashon'']]. In 1978, the [[MV Olympic|''Olympic'']] returned to the [[Mukilteo, Washington|Mukilteo]]-[[Clinton, Washington|Clinton]] run, and the larger [[Steel Electric Class ferry|Steel Electric Class]] [[MV Illahee|MV ''Illahee'']], was added to the mix. Unfortunately for the ''Kulshan'', her open decks and flat, barge-like appearance made her infamous in [[Puget Sound]], rather than beloved and appreciated. Unlike her numerous [[Washington (U.S. state)|Washington]] passenger ferry sailing companions, the ''Kulshan'' was considered "ugly" as well as "loathed" and "despised".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.evergreenfleet.com/kulshan.html |title=Despised ferry of Puget Sound |access-date=2009-07-05 |archive-date=2020-10-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031093431/http://www.evergreenfleet.com/kulshan.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Experienced cross-[[Puget Sound|sound]] travellers were accustomed to getting on board – either on foot or with their vehicle – and then going upstairs to main passenger cabin or the onboard galley for refreshments. While there were public restrooms on board in the central island structure, the vessel was not equipped with, nor did it have room for, the usual [[Washington State Ferry]] amenities. Passengers were able to walk the car-deck, but on anything other than a clear and/or sunny day this was not a very comfortable option. During any time of year other than summer, the waters of [[Possession Sound]] were frequently rough and filled with white-caps and waves known to breach over the vessel's bulwark, consequently soaking the cars (and sometimes the passengers) on board.
==Reassignment== On February 13, 1979, a powerful, winter [[February 13, 1979 Windstorm|windstorm]] caused a catastrophic failure of the floating [[Hood Canal Bridge]]. With the sustained winds at 85 mph (137 km/h) and gusts estimated at 120 mph (193 km/h), the bridge finally succumbed at about 7:00 a.m. The western drawspan and the pontoons of the western half of the bridge had broken loose and sank, forcing those living on the [[Kitsap Peninsula]] to take an inconvenient detour. A [[Hood Canal]] ferry run was re-established by utilizing the ''Kulshan'' between Lofall and South Point across the canal just south of the unusable bridge. This route had previously been active in the 1950s but discontinued after the bridge opened in 1961. During the course of the [[Hood Canal Bridge]] closure, an additional ferry route was temporarily added between [[Edmonds, Washington|Edmonds]] and [[Port Townsend]]. As the need increased, the [[MV Tillikum|MV ''Tillikum'']] was also added to the run.
While the [[Hood Canal Bridge]] was not reopened again until October 25, 1982, the ''Kulshan'' was returned to the [[Mukilteo, Washington|Mukilteo]]-[[Clinton, Washington|Clinton]] run in 1981 when she was replaced at [[Hood Canal]] by a larger ferry. This time, the ''Kulshan'' ran again alongside the [[MV Illahee|MV ''Illahee'']] and now also the [[MV Nisqually|MV ''Nisqually'']].
==For one film, a movie star== Although the ''Kulshan'' was strongly disliked by both [[Puget Sound]] locals and visitors, the vessel achieved a positive nod from Hollywood when she was chosen to be forever immortalized in the 1982 [[Paramount Pictures]] film, ''[[An Officer and a Gentleman]]''. In the first half of the movie, the ''Kulshan'' is prominently featured when actresses [[Lisa Blount]] (Lynette Pomeroy) and [[Debra Winger]] (Paula Pokrifki) take a ride across [[Puget Sound]] aboard the "ugly", but perfectly-open-for-filming-purposes, MV ''Kulshan''.
==Last of the ''Kulshan'' in Puget Sound== In 1983, the MV ''Kulshan'' was placed on the [[Point Defiance-Tahlequah route]] as a temporary substitute for the [[MV Hiyu|MV ''Hiyu'']]. On her last official passenger run there, the on-board captain rang the final "finished with engines" horn and her tenure with the [[Washington State Ferry|Washington State Ferries]] was finished.
==A new life in a new ocean== In 1983, the MV ''Kulshan'' was sold to the [[United States Coast Guard]] for service in [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] waters at [[Governor's Island]], [[New York (state)|New York]]. While being towed on her way southward toward the [[Panama Canal]], the ''Kulshan'' stopped briefly in San Diego in order for ferry historians to see her one last time on the west coast. After arriving in [[New York Harbor]] after her long journey, modifications were made to the vessel, including a new passenger lounge at one side and the replacement of the wooden bridge deck bulwarks with steel tubular railings. It was at this time that the MV ''Kulshan'' was re-christened the [[MV Governor|MV ''Governor'']] and now ran alongside the [[MV Coursen|MV ''Coursen'']], [[MV Minue|MV ''Minue'']], and the [[MV Tides|MV ''Tides'']], ferrying passengers between [[New York City]] and [[Governor's Island]] until the late 1990s.
On July 26, 1997, the ''Kulshan''/''Governor'' took her last sailing for the [[United States Coast Guard|Coast Guard]]. The closure of [[Governor’s Island]] made the ''Kulshan/Governor'' surplus for a third time whereupon she was purchased in 1998 by the [[Massachusetts]]-based [[Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority]] (SSA).<ref name='MVTimes 2007'>{{cite news| title=News in Brief| date=2007-10-04| url=http://www.mvtimes.com/news/2007/10/04/news_in_brief.php| work=Martha's Vineyard Times| accessdate=2009-06-14| url-status=dead| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080829193139/http://www.mvtimes.com/news/2007/10/04/news_in_brief.php| archivedate=2008-08-29}}</ref> The “double-ended” [[MV Governor|''Governor'']] is the longest and widest vessel in the SSA fleet at 242’x 65’ and the only vessel with [[diesel-electric]] propulsion. She continues to run proudly as a passenger ferry there to this day.
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.evergreenfleet.com Evergreenfleet.com A History of Washington State Ferries Past and Present]
{{WSF Ferry Classes}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kulshan, MV}} [[Category:Washington State Ferries vessels]] [[Category:1954 ships]]