Page 76 - RedWhiteFleet_interiors_Sep10

OVER A CENTURY OF ADVENTURE

he first passenger tours originated during the had picnics there, and I can remember going to ball games,” LEFT: An early Red and White
1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition, recalled Tom Escher. “It was really a lot of fun. They had Fleet patch shows the classic teardrop
Tand consisted of trips out into the Bay to see the swimming, horseshoes . . . and I remember that everything motif with a rare splash of orange
battleship USS Oregon, as well as sightseeing tours of local was painted green.” Double-decker excursion boats as well thrown in.
waterfront landmarks. These took place on the company’s as water taxis transported guests to and from the park, OPPOSITE: This array of shots
original sightseeing boats, the Crowley No. 17 and Crowley and generated most of the venture’s income. However, as shows the evolution of the Red
No. 18, double-decker tour boats specially designed for automobile ownership became more common and guests and White Fleet passenger service:
passenger comfort. In 1939, at the start of the Golden Gate started driving themselves to the site, the profitable ferry trip (clockwise from top left) Crowley
International Exposition, the tours were expanded to include became obsolete, spelling an end to the Paradise Cove era. No. 18 conducts an early Crowley
sightseeing tour. • Passengers board
the Golden Gate Bay Cruise, which showed off the recently It was sometime during this decade—although the exact a Harbor Tours vessel, which is
completed Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, and which is still date is unknown—that the name “Red and White Fleet” began what Crowley called its sightseeing
in existence today. to be used in conjunction with the tour portion of Crowley’s operation during the early 1940s. •
As the excitement of the back-to-back Expositions business. Bay Cruise brochures from this time period start The renamed Royal Prince in the
faded from the public’s mind, Crowley kept innovating, to reference riding the “Red and White Boats” shortly before modern Red and White Fleet style.
devising new ferry destinations to keep local passengers transitioning to the current name, the Red and White Fleet. • The original Harbor Prince sails
away from the Bay Bridge, loaded
interested. After World War II ended, he purchased a 128- with passengers.
acre amusement park on Paradise Cove in Marin County,
originally known as El Campo Amusement Park. “He used
to rent that out to large groups who wanted to get out of the
city,” Crowley’s grandson Casey Escher recalled. “He would
use his launches to run passengers back and forth, and it was
relatively stable business because it was so much fun.”
The location remained open throughout the 1950s and
featured food and bar service, a baseball diamond, and a
large pavilion for dancing, becoming a popular destination
for San Franciscans looking to escape the city. “The company

76 • Red and White Fleet