Tugboat Enthusiasts Society

Historic Tugboats

The best way to learn about tugboats is to get aboard one and tour it. For most of us, this means going aboard a historic tug and talking to its crew.
This page recognizes historic tugboats and the folks working to keep these boats afloat and available for this and future generations

Tugboat Enthusiasts Society members and enthusiasts can email our webmaster with information about your local historic tugboat so it can be included on this page.

Maintaining a historic tugboat is an endless job, requiring the time, the talents and the resources of patrons, professionals, people, and volunteers. Many of these tugboat volunteers are also Tugboat Enthusiasts Society members.

If you want to learn more about volunteer opportunities or making donations to these historic tugboats, check the individual vessel's website for contact information or email our webmaster.

Our goal is to recognize them all. We are starting with these tugs because we know about them and many society members are also volunteers with them.

Support your Local Historic Tugboat

Tugboat LUNA Preservation Society
Tug PEGASUS Preservation Project
NOKOMIS (YT-142, later YTB-142 & YTM-142), 1940-1975
1902 IRON TUG JUPITER

Tugboat LUNA Preservation Society

From their website:"The Luna Preservation Society (LPS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the tugboat Luna, a National Historic Landmark moored in Boston, MA.
The Luna was the first commercial diesel-electric ship-docking tug of its kind and played an important role in the development of Boston Harbor. She is the last surviving full-sized wooden tug on both the Gulf and Atlantic coasts and is currently undergoing major refurbishing."

For more information about this tugboat go to their website by clicking: LUNA

Tug PEGAGUS Preservation Project

The Tug PEGAGUS Preservation Project website states:" We are a not-for-profit preservation effort under charter from the Regents of the State University of the State of New York. We are on the National Register of Historic Places. Our affiliates include North River Historic Ship Society and Historic Naval Ships Association."

"Our mission is the preservation of the tugboat PEGASUS, ex- S.O. Co. No.16, the spirit, and the life surrounding it. We look forward to bringing to the public access to the waterfront of the great Hudson River and the Port of New York and using the tugboat as a platform to interpret our maritime history."

For more information about this tugboat go to their website by clicking: PEGASUS

NOKOMIS 1940-1975:YT-142, later YTB-142 & YTM-142

This is excerpted from the NOKOMIS' website: "The tugboat's NOKOMIS, a 218-ton harbor tug, was built at the Charleston Navy Yard. Placed in service in March 1940, she was assigned to the Fourteenth Naval District for service at Pearl Harbor. Reclassified YTB-142 in May 1944 and YTM-142 in February 1962, Nokomis operated in the Pearl Harbor area into the early 1970s. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in May 1973 and sold in April 1975.

"The NOKOMIS was purchased and operated by Crowley Maritime in the San Francisco bay area. The company terminated their operations in the San Francisco area in the mid 90s and the NOKOMUS was left in a derelict condition. The NOKOMIS was rediscovered and purchased by her present owner in mid 2002. The NOKOMIS is now in the care of the Historic Tugboat Education and Restoration Society which is making preparations to open the NOKOMIS for general visiting in San Francisco."

For more information about this tugboat go to their website by clicking: USS NOKOMIS

1902 Iron Tug JUPITER

This excerpt is taken from the Tugboat Jupiter's fact sheet: "The charcoal iron tug JUPITER, built in the Philadelphia shipyard of Neafie and Levy in 1902, is the oldest continually operating harbor tug on the Delaware River. JUPITER as she is listed in The International Register of Historic ships, was built in 1902 for the Standard Oil Company of New York (Socony,) and christened SOCONY 14."

"In 1939, Independent Pier Company of Philadelphia bought the tug and renamed her JUPITER. In her homeport of Philadelphia, she docked ships, towed barges on the river, and worked with naval traffic in the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. JUPITER continued working commercially out of Philadelphia until 1980, when she was sold to Eastern Towing Company of Boston."

"In 1989, the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and maintaining historic vessels, bought the tug. Maintained by the Ship Guild she takes part in educational programs, festivals, and boat parades. JUPITER continues her tug work and aids other vessels such as the Ship Guild's barkentine GAZELA."

For more information about this tugboat go to their website by clicking: JUPITER

Other links for historic tugs that may be of interest:

Steam Tug BALTIMORE

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Please note that the information posted here is only as good as what we are provided.

We unfortunately do not have much time chase down leads and research organizations in detail.