• A section of the bowsprint and figurehead on the bow of BALCLUTHA.

    San Francisco Maritime

    National Historical Park California

Wapama

Steam schooner dockside in 1931.
The WAPAMA in San Francisco in 1931.
NPS SAFR AL.85n
 

Statistics

Overall length 216 feet
Beam 40 feet
Depth 14 feet
Gross Tonnage 951
Propulsion System Single screw propeller,
Triple expansion steam
engine, 800 IHP
(Indicated Horsepower)
Boilers Two oil-fired water tube
boilers

  • Constructed in 1915 almost entirely of Douglas fir in St. Helens, Oregon by the St. Helens Ship Building Company.
  • A wooden steamship and the last survivor of the approximately 235 steam schooners that were built on the West Coast.
  • The Wapama, and similar steam schooners, transported lumber from Northern California and the Pacific Northwest, that was used to build California cities.
  • These large, wooden vessels also provided the only effective passenger service from the 1880s through the 1930s.

Wapama is not open for public visitation.

Click on this link for more Wapama photos and information.

Did You Know?

San Francisco Fire, 1906. A painting by William A. Coulter.

San Francisco Fire, 1906. A painting by William A. Coulter. The "Great Earthquake" shook the city at 5:12 am on Wednesday, April 18, 1906. William A. Coulter, a maritime artist and journalist, painted this scene on a ten foot wide window shade that he pulled from a demolished bank building in the rubble of the still-burning city. More...