High Seas: Ocean Tow Boats

Carson had come home after the terrible World War had ended, he was tired and his heart remained heavy over the loss of Susan, his wife, three years earlier. His Mother, Helen and his Dad, Thomas, had taken care of Carson's young son, Terry, while Carson served his country.

Little Terry was just beginning to be an active little boy, into everything and every other word was, "Why?" Carson loved lying on the floor and playing with his young son, but, after the hectic pace he had operated at during his time commanding a large Navy Tanker during wartime, he soon was "chaffing at the bit" for something to do.

His Dad was a lawyer and had recently been appointed to the Appellate Court as Senior Judge. That life did not appeal to him, he loved the sea. Just before leaving the Navy, he had sat for his Master's License in the Merchant Marine. Although, he already had a Third Engineer's license, he had proved himself as a Captain of a large multi-cargo tanker.

He had applied for a position at several places, but there was a glut of qualified people being released from the military. He was beginning to wonder if he might be forced to relearn how to navigate a plow on their old family farm in the San Joaquin Valley, when he spotted a small article in the San Francisco paper about a sale the government was holding to dispose of surplus ocean tugboats.

He had never considered anything like that, but, the more he thought about it, the more the idea grew on him. Carson had been frugal his entire life, a trait handed down to him from his Grandfather and his own Father. Grandpa Bates had left his only grandson, Carson, a considerable fortune in land and stocks, including 20,000 acres of farmland in the Great Central Valley of California.

Thinking about the Tug Boat sale, he went down to the bank and got an accounting of his holdings. What he had, surprised him, he had not looked at the account since before he had gone off to the Academy. He wondered if it would be enough to purchase a tug boat.

He spoke with the branch President, Nelson Little, a distant cousin of his Mother. Nelson advised him to use his holdings as collateral and the bank would loan him the money if he really wanted to purchase a tug boat.

Carson went back home and discussed the matter with his Father, whose common sense and honesty Carson treasured. Thomas agreed with Nelson Little and told Carson that he and Carson's Mother, Helen, would back him with whatever he needed that was not covered by the bank.

It was with high hopes that Carson Bates drove down to San Francisco and went out to Hunter's Point Naval Shipyard, where the sale was to take place.

There were not many who had registered for the sale and, as Carson walked around the vessels, one caught his eye. The name on the hull was the USS Shelby Coast. She was an Ocean Tug of some 900 tons, built in 1944 and powered by a Nordberg Diesel Engine.

He saw on the bidder's list that there were several others bidding on the vessel, so he sat down and calculated what the best offer he could make would be and he entered his bid.

The bidding was closed at 12 noon and the winners would be announced at 2 pm that same day.

Carson slipped over to Fisherman's Wharf and treated himself to a lunch of steamed crab.

He returned to the Navy Base shortly before 2 pm and he waited for the bidder's list to be posted. A Navy Yeoman came out and posted the list and several men rushed to see if their names were on the list. Several walked away in disappointment and Carson began to worry. He had put down $5,000 as earnest money and that was not refundable, in order to enter the bidding.

When he got up to the bulletin board, his scanned the list for the USS Shelby Coast. His name was under the vessel's name, he had just bought himself a ship! After his feared disappointment, he could hardly catch his breath and he had to sit down on an adjacent bench to collect his thoughts.

Over the next several days, Carson had the ship towed over to the Bethlehem Shipyard to be dry-docked, inspected and painted. He also went down to the union halls and advertised for a complete Engine Room crew and a First, Second and Third Mates, along with deckhands. He also needed stewards, cooks and a laundryman. He would also have to have a Purser as he intended to take his new ship international for the long hauls that were more lucrative than coastal short runs.

When the painters at the Bethlehem Shipworks asked what colors did he want the ship to be painted, he told them he wanted the stack to be bright red and the rest of the ship a deep blue. The insides were to be white, with red trim. He wanted NOTHING to be haze gray or sea foam green! Those were the colors all Navy Ships were painted and didn't want to ever see sea foam green again, EVER! He did not hate the Navy, he only hated their choice of colors.

By the end of the week, the ship was ready to be named and Carson chose the name of his son, "TERRY", as the name for his new Ocean Tug. The Terry was a handsome ship, with her bright red stack, a color that would become the trademark as the new company grew. The red stack became their symbol and many just called it "The Red Stack Line".

While the Terry was alongside the pier, being outfitted, a crew began to straggle on board. There were a couple who showed up under the influence of drink and he sent them back to the union hall, the rest, he invited on board and showed them their quarters. The prospective crew members wandered around The Terry, everything was clean and bright and they were hoping like hell that this new Captain would choose them for his crew! Jobs were scarce immediately after the World War and there were a lot of hungry sailors looking to feed their own families.

He figured they would be ready to sail in another week, so he went home to spend the weekend with his family and young son. The boy had a difficult time understanding why his Daddy had to go away again but his Grandpa Thomas promised to take him to the big city to see his Daddy's new ship when it was ready to sail.

Terry didn't fully understand, but the promise of going somewhere had him happy. The following week went by fast, the Marconi Operator showed up and stores were arriving daily. On the Friday before they planned on sailing Monday morning, they bunkered the ship with fuel and filled the water tanks. The ship began to come alive as the Engineers rolled the main engine and put both generators online. The slight vibration from the generators felt like a heartbeat, The Terry was waking up!

Carson already had an ocean tow contract, there was a tow to Valparaiso. Bethlehem Steel had contracted with the government of Chile to provide a whole new tank farm to supply the port and the city with fuels. Bethlehem Steel had pre-formed all the steel parts and they were to be assembled and welded in place by crews sent by the steel company. The parts were already assembled on barges, ready for the trip.

The last person to be hired was his deceased wife's younger brother, Charlie Daniels, as the new company's Business Agent. Carson had known Charlie briefly in the service and the two men had liked each other immediately. Their family bonds bound them even closer. Charlie dearly loved his little nephew Terry Bates and was always spoiling the boy with treats and toys.

Charlie had not been able to find work after his release from active duty in the Navy and was delighted when Carson had given him a call. Carson went over with Charlie the type of business he was looking for and the shore-side duties that Charlie would have to perform to keep the Terry in operation.

Charlie had a Business Degree from the University, with a minor in Business Law, it was a combination that would keep the two men together for the remainder of their lives.

Monday morning came around before anyone was ready, Wills Douglas, another Navy veteran, was Chief Engineer and he, along with the entire Black Gang, had been on aboard since 3 am, making sure all the machinery would run. Their experience in the Navy taught them to never leave anything to the very last minute!

They had run up the high-pressure air supply, using shore power to run the compressor. There were two General Motors 2-68-A 300 kW generators and Wills decided to run them both in parallel until he was satisfied with their operation. It took a great deal of winch power to make up a pull, and all three winches on the Terry were electric.

The main engine, a huge, vertical six-cylinder Nordberg Diesel Engine was direct connected to the shaft, so he could not run it ahead of time. He did "puff" the engine a couple of time, just to be sure it would start when needed. The huge engine was slow-moving, it developed full power at 90 RPM. Each time a cylinder fired, the whole crew could feel it in their teeth!

The rest of the crew was all there by 8 am and Carson saw his Dad and little Terry standing on the pier. He whispered in John Gordon's, the First Mate, ear and then hurried down to the pier to hug his son and father.

He picked up Terry and was holding him, the happy little boy was "oooing and ahhwing" at the big boat his Daddy had when the First Mate leaned on the ship's horn. Terry held his hands over his ears and screamed delightedly. Carson kissed his son and told him he had to go "Drive the BOAT".

After hugging his Dad and throwing a salute to his son, Captain Terry Carson went aboard and began making ready for sea. He tested everything and then ordered the lines singled up and the water and shore power cables had been taken in and stowed.

He ordered the after lines taken in and told the Lee Helmsman to order "Back Slow" as the stern of the Terry began to hinge out on the forward mooring lines. After an "STOP" to allow the forward lines to be taken in, He ordered the Helmsman to sound "I am going astern" on the ship's horn and the Terry began to back out into San Francisco Bay.

The run over to the Steel Work's cargo pier was only a few minutes, Thomas and Terry stood on the pier until the TERRY had rounded the corner and the two of them went back home. A little boy was near to tears as he saw his Daddy going away again. He clung to his Grandfather and sobbed, wetting Grandpapa's jacket.

The barges were already loaded, six of them were lined up at the Bethlehem Pier. Carson insisted on inspecting the load himself and he took John Gordon with him, checking all the tie downs and level of the load. When both men were satisfied, it was nearing dark so Carson elected to wait until the next morning to depart, since it was their "maiden voyage".

He told his crew they could go ashore if they wished, but he wanted them all back by 3 am, only a couple went ashore and everyone was back before midnight. Carson sat in his stateroom, listening as his crew came back on board, he did not hear anything untoward and it was evident none of his crew had any of the alcohol problems that, unfortunately, plagued many merchant seamen.

At 5 am, Wills started preparing the main engine and started the second generator, putting the two generators on line in parallel, just in case. At 7:30 am, the TERRY began maneuvering the six heavily laden barges away from the pier, one at a time, before heading out into the channel leading to the famed Golden Gate.

They could hear the main engine take up the load, its throb could be felt in all their teeth. Carson increased his speed to AHEAD ONE THIRD and the drone of the engine changed to a rhythmic thump. Every time a cylinder fired, the entire crew felt the "wham: as the diesel fuel exploded in the cylinder.

There was little traffic on the bay, except for some playboy in a speedboat. Carson wondered if the idiot thought the TERRY had brakes on the Tug and it's load? At least the durned fool had enough sense not to cut across the towline! They eased under the Great Bridge that marked the entrance to San Francisco Bay, and they headed across Banana Reef just outside the "Gate". The tow was following like an obedient dog and everyone began to settle down for what looked to be a calm and uneventful tow.

Once past the turbulent waters of the reef, Carson ordered the speed increased to AHEAD ONE-HALF and they headed due west to get across the Humboldt Current that was always rough and turbulent. They crossed the current about three hours after departure. They were only doing about eight knots until they were in the middle of the southbound current. Once Carson was sure they were completely away from the current boundary, he ordered the helmsman to his chosen course that he planned on staying with until they were off the coast of Puerto Vallarta in Mexico. The helpful current ran, straight as an arrow, down the coast of the Americas.

He gradually raised the speed until they were at AHEAD FULL and 90 rpm on the shaft. The tug was riding easy and the barges were tracking in a straight line, so he headed below for his lunch, leaving the Third Mate on watch. The Second would relieve the Third at 12 noon and the First would take the watch at 4 pm. The Third Mate took the Noon Sight and logged the Terry at twelve knots, a very satisfactory speed considering their heavy load.

After he had eaten, he was a bit restless, so he toured the tug, ending up in the Engine Room. He gave the Chief Engineer the courtesy of accompanying him before he entered the Engineering spaces and the two men looked the place over. He asked Chief Wills if he had any problems and Wills said, "No sir, everything is running fine. I will start the evaporator this evening. We are not low on water but......"

Carson laughed and told Wills that was his problem, just so long as there was enough water for him to brush his teeth in the morning! The two men were forming an easy relationship of mutual respect.

The rest of the day went well. Carson had insisted there be sufficient supplies on board and he was not going to allow a "chintzie" Mess. Any ship that got a bad reputation as a "poor feeder" would always have a problem getting a good crew.

The cooks went all out the first night at sea, they served pot roast with baked potatoes and fresh green beans. There was lemon pie for dessert and plenty of coffee and milk. They set out a second pie for those who wanted a second helping, and most of the younger crew members "groaned" their way back to their quarters! On a small ship like the Terry, all members of the crew ate with each other, like a family.

Carson completed the entries in his "Sea Log" and took a stroll around the upper decks of the TERRY. Unlike a Navy ship, there was not a man on "every valve", but he had sufficient crew to operate the ship and the Terry was riding "easy". The main engine was handling the load easily and they were making good time.

Before going to bed, he stuck his head in the Radio Shack and asked the Operator if there had been any weather alerts. The man shook his head "No" and Carson said "Good Night" and headed to his own bed.

He was somewhat restless during the night, but he put that down to it being their first night out on a strange ship. A good captain always slept with one ear tuned to his ship. They quickly fell into a routine, it was going to be a long fifteen day voyage to pull the barges to Valparaiso.

The further south they sailed, the better the weather became, by the next morning, the helmsman was in shorts with no shirt. Carson looked aft and saw a "flash of flesh" as the tow watch was keeping track of the tow. He figured he would not go aft, he was pretty sure that the tow tender had stripped down to his shoes in the unaccustomed heat!

Everyone became accustomed to the steady thump of the main engine, Nordberg Engines were notoriously smooth running engines and, at 90 rpm, they were not overworking the engine. Everything became routine, even the lookout up on the bow would soon be able to tell if the Engineers were in trouble just by how the vibrations of the deck felt! On a small vessel like theirs, trouble in the Engine room was everybody's concern!

Their track took them straight south and, once south of the Channel Islands off Santa Barbara, he ordered the course changed slightly to the east. He planned on passing to the east of Guadalupe Island before heading to the west of Isla Maria Madre and the several small islands nearby.

Another several days of steady thumping brought Isla San Juanico up on the navigation radar. The Marconi Operator piped some radio traffic from Isla Maria Madre onto the bridge, but none of it was for them and only Carson spoke any Spanish, other than the usual waterfront curses.

Once past Isla Maria Madre, Carson changed course again and they took aim for the Galapagos Islands right on the Equator. It would be a couple of days before they would have to change course again to head directly for Valparaiso. The weather was holding, they were a bit ahead of the usual typhoon season and they continued to thump their way across the Pacific Ocean.

As they began their approach to Bahia Valparaiso, the Port Authority directed them to the cargo piers next to the Naval Basin. They arrived at the Pilot Boat just at dawn and the pilot jumped on board the TERRY. Carson's Spanish was better than the Pilot's English, so Carson made sure the helmsman understood what the pilot was telling him to do.

The pilot brought them smoothly up to the entrance of the Naval Basin before returning control to Carson. The man had a cheery smile and, with a "Gracias" when Carson tipped him, he jumped back into the Pilot Boat and headed back to the harbor entrance. Tipping was not necessary, but it never hurt to have a friend in a strange port.

There were no tugs to receive them, so Carson dropped his tow and used the TERRY to nudge each barge up against the cargo pier. There was room for only three barges at a time, so they were needed to herd the still-loaded barges around the outer harbor. As the barges were unloaded, a small tug came out and pulled them to a buoy in the middle of the harbor. The little tug certainly was not big enough to maneuver a loaded barge and it was the only tug they had seen!

After three days, all the barges were, thankfully, unloaded without any problems and Carson was able to make up his tow for the return voyage of empty barges. He wanted to get away before any typhoons made their appearance, a pull of empty barges in a typhoon would be like trying to herd cats! They were on the edge of the typhoon season and he wanted to get away as soon as possible after they had made their delivery.

On the morning of their fourth day in port, all their paperwork was delivered to Carson and they began preparations to get underway and return to their home port. A couple of the seamen had gone ashore and looked like they had been ridden hard and put up wet, but, other than that, there had been no problems ashore and the Harbor Master gave them clearance to depart.

Carson got the barges lined up and they sailed from Valparaiso at 30 rpm on the shaft until they cleared the last harbor buoy. Carson then turned the bridge over to the Third Mate, telling him to, "Take us home!" He watched as the Third Mate laid out his course and found nothing wrong with what the young man was doing or the course he had chosen, so he left the bridge and wandered the ship for a while, until it was time to eat his lunch.

The return voyage was somewhat boring, they did run into a storm off the coast of Acapulco and the barges were tossed around pretty good. During the night, the Second Mate slowed the TERRY down and the barges fell into line again. It was a delicate balance between speed and control over the tow.

As they continued north, they ran out of the storm and the weather improved. They were making good time up the coast when they received a message from Charlie Daniels that he had a three-barge load for them in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The load was huge copper ingots and they were to be delivered to the ASARCO refinery on San Pablo Bay, near Vallejo, California. Copper ingots were a good load as they were rectangular and stacked well.

Carson was happy they did not have to make the entire return trip "dead head" and he made the turn east to enter the small harbor. The port's cargo handling equipment was very small and it took a day each to load the barges. All the while, the TERRY was running on its own generator as there were no harbor facilities of any kind in Puerto Vallarta. Carson was thinking of dollar bills streaming out the ship's stack!

At last, they were loaded and he lost no time shaking his heels out of the harbor. It was a quick run from there up the coast and four days later they were dodging the Farallon Islands off the entrance to The Golden Gate.

They dropped the barges off at ASARCO and the empties at Harbor Brokers, who owned them. He then headed for their rented pier in Oakland. He was tired, but not exhausted, it had been a good run and he was pretty sure they had worked all the "kinks" out of The Terry and its crew.

All the crew had elected to stay with the TERRY and Carson was happy with the way they all worked together, so he agreed to keep them all. They tied up at Bates Ocean Towing pier and, thankfully, rang down, "FINISHED WITH ENGINE".

Charlie Daniels was on the pier, waiting to come on board. As soon as the gangway was in place, he walked up it and headed for Carson's office/stateroom. He had a fist full of papers that needed to be signed and then he said, "I better get you home, otherwise that little nephew of mine is gonna tear us both a new one!"

Carson was hardly in the door of his parents' home when a little red headed tornado came flashing down the hallway and leaped into his arms without even looking, sure that his Daddy would catch him. They both had tears in their eyes and Terry asked, "Didja git me somethin'?"

Carson told his son, "Yeah, let's go out to Uncle Charlie's car and get it." Terry and Carson came back in the house with Terry hidden under a huge sombrero. He had to hold it up so he could see where he was going. Grandma was right there with the camera and she caught that little red headed boy peeking out from under the sombrero's edge. The hat was almost as big as the boy!

Charlie was asked to stay for supper, he had never married and, if truth were to be known, he had feelings for his brother in law, Carson but he would never say a word to Carson about it.

The pull had been highly profitable and Carson went back to the bank to make a payment on the loan. Nelson Little asked him if there were any more tug boats like the Terry, the bank would be happy to back him in a second tug. Carson had never considered that, but...... So he said that he would look into it.

Charlie was making arrangements to restock and refuel the TERRY and Carson took a ride over to Hunter's Point to look into another tug. As it happened, they had an Ocean Tug, a sister ship to the TERRY and it had not sold at the last auction. Carson asked what he had to do to bid on the ship and the local Supply Officer said, "I will sell the damned thing to you for the same price as what you paid for the first one." Carson replied, "Let me have my Chief Engineer look her over and I will let you know tomorrow."

The Supply Officer agreed and Carson hot-footed it back over to Oakland to gather up Wills Douglas and together, they would inspect the USS Oglala. They spent the remainder of the day crawling over the ship and Wills told him that, as far as he could see, the ship was in "Like New" condition. It had been built at the end of the war and only saw two voyages before it was shut down.

The next morning saw Carson on the phone to Nelson Little, who told him the bank would back him to the same amount as he had paid for the TERRY. Nelson sent a teletype to the Navy Supply Officer at Hunter's Point and the officer was waiting for Carson when he got there. In two hours of paperwork, Carson was the proud owner of a second Ocean Tug!

With Charlie's assistance, Carson had the new tug towed over to the Bethlehem Shipyard, he wanted the hull inspected and the ship repainted to the same colors as The TERRY. He then contacted the union halls and made arraignment to have the ship crewed. He would supply his own Captain, the Union Agent was not too happy about that, but it was legal.

Carson contacted an old classmate from the Academy, Peter Van. They had been friends, even though Carson had been an Engineering student and Peter had been Deck. He had heard that Peter had been released from the Navy and was looking for a job. He called Peter down in Palo Alto and asked him if he had his Master's Ticket.

Peter replied, "Yeah, I sure do, you gotta a tug job for me? I heard you had your own tug boat now."

Carson laughed, "Yeah, in fact I got two of em' now!"

Peter asked, "When do I start?"

Carson asked, "You are gonna ask anything about what kind of tub it is?"

Peter replied, "Nope, I saw your TERRY tied up in Oakland, if it even just LOOKS like her, I will take the job."

Carson chuckled, "OK, you got the job, how about I pick you up tomorrow and take you over to the sister ship to the TERRY?" That was fine with Peter and they both hung up. Both men were pleased, Carson knew that Peter would do a great job and Peter was getting worried, he had not been able to find work. He was supporting his widowed mother and he saw no way he could keep her in her house if he did not find work soon. The elderly lady was afflicted with severe arthritis and required large amounts of medicines.

Carson picked Peter up the next morning and took him over to the new ship. He had been pondering what to name here and he finally decided to call the ship the THOMAS after his own father. He took Peter all over the ship and introduced him to the crew members who had already reported onboard. A couple of the deck hands were men Peter had known in the Navy and he liked what he saw of the ship. He figured, if the rest was as good as what the ship looked like, he was gonna stay a very long time!

Charlie met the two men on board the THOMAS and then he got busy stocking the ship. He told Peter that he would have a tow for him within the next few days. Trucks were already lined up, delivering food and supplies for The THOMAS.

With two ships to keep busy, Charlie hired another clerk and put in an advertisement for a Marconi operator so he could stay in contact with both ships. He was pretty sure Carson was not going to stop at just two ships. He sat down with Carson just before Carson needed to go over to The TERRY and he said, "Bro, you are gonna have to think about staying home if you get one more ship. I can make a lot of decisions, but there are some that only you can make."

Carson was not too happy with that, but he saw the wisdom of his brother in law's statement. Worse, what Charlie said was true, he WAS thinking ahead and thinking of more ships. He liked the tug boat business and he found that he was good at it. He had two magnificent tug boats and prospective customers were knocking on their doors. They delivered on time and charged no surcharges. That was almost unknown in the towing business!

Charlie got both ships a full tow, Carson was going to have to guide The TERRY to Japan. He had six barges of rice to be loaded in Stockton, destined for Tokyo and a return load of surplus military equipment belonging to the US Army to bring back home.

For The THOMAS, he found five barges of mining machinery to go to Sydney, Australia and another load, already loaded on barges in Sydney bound for Malaysia. Then, Peter would have to run empty to Manila, where there would be seven barges of tropical hardwoods all cut and bound for delivery to Los Angeles. He was sure he would have a cargo out of Los Angeles by the time Peter got The THOMAS there.

Both tugs made ready to depart, they filled their water tanks and checked the fuel tanks, they both would sail the next morning. The TERRY would head upriver, at high tide, to Stockton while The THOMAS would pick up the five barges at the Southern Pacific Marine Terminal.

Both men were in "High Heaven" they were doing what they most enjoyed, commanding ships at sea. Little did either of them know that it was only the lull before the storm, in a few short years there would be another terrible war centered in the Korean Peninsula and yet another a few years later and another and another until and then, unimagined date of the year 2000 arrived and even that would not be the end to the battles! Carson would be old and gray when his son took over the business from him and Peter would be a tired old man when he finally could retire from the sea and dream that he was still master of his own ship!

They both were destined to be Servants of the Seas!

It is said that the sea is a hard taskmaster and many sailors grew old before their time, or, at least they looked old!