AH-WR-0736

Bahada

Tugboat · United States · Lost 1926 · The Salish Sea

A Puget Sound log-towing tug that vanished with all nine hands off Huckleberry Island in 1926, found only when its log raft drifted free.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Bahada was a steel-hulled steam tug built in 1902 by Moran Brothers in Seattle for Admiralty Tug, later working the Puget Sound towing trade for Gilkey Bros. of Anacortes. On the night of November 21, 1926, while towing a raft of logs from Anacortes to Bellingham, she disappeared near Huckleberry and Saddlebag Islands. Her loss was discovered when the unattended log raft was found floating; wreckage consistent with a boiler explosion was recovered, though some questioned that explanation. All nine crew members died. The wreck was later located in roughly 240-247 feet of water and has since been explored by technical divers.

Vessel

Built: 1902
Builder: Moran Brothers Shipyard
Yard: Seattle, Washington
Material: Steel
Length: 86 ft
Beam: 19 ft
Tonnage: 132
Propulsion: Steam, single screw
Owners: Gilkey Bros.

Loss

Date: November 21, 1926
Cause: Mechanical failure
Location: North of Huckleberry and Saddlebag Islands, Puget Sound
Water: Puget Sound / Salish Sea
Voyage: Anacortes, Washington → Bellingham, Washington
Cargo: Log raft under tow
Aboard: 9
Lives lost: 9
Master: George Hansen

The Wreck Today

Depth: 240-247
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 48.52° N 122.58° W
Accuracy: Reported, unconfirmed
Nearest: Huckleberry and Saddlebag Islands, Washington
Region: The Salish Sea

Dive-community sources (pnwdiving.com, Maritime Doc Society) report the tug Bahada sank on Nov 21, 1926 in about 240-247 feet of water on the north side of Huckleberry and Saddlebag Islands; coordinates given are the general charted position of these islands, as no precise surveyed wreck position was found in an official source.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Partially documented (68/100)

The precise cause of loss (boiler explosion versus collision or mechanical failure) is not conclusively established, and exact coordinates are not independently verified.