AH-WR-0183

Elfin

Steamboat · United States · Lost 1900 · Lake Washington

A wooden steam launch that linked Kirkland and Seattle for a decade caught fire and sank off Houghton in 1900, resting today in 125 feet of water.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Elfin was built in 1891 by E. F. Lee at the Pontiac shipyard on Lake Washington for Captain Frank Curtis and entered passenger service that July. She ran a regular schedule linking Kirkland, Yarrow Bay, Northup's Landing and Madison Park, and was repowered with a pilothouse added in 1896. On December 2, 1900, she caught fire and sank off Houghton. A wreck matching her description was identified by SCRET divers in 2002 in about 125 feet of water.

Vessel

Built: 1891
Builder: E. F. Lee, Pontiac shipyard
Yard: Lake Washington, Washington
Material: Wood
Length: 55 ft
Beam: 13.5 ft
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam, propeller
Owners: Captain Frank Curtis

Loss

Date: December 2, 1900
Cause: Fire
Location: Off Houghton (present-day Carillon Point)
Water: Lake Washington
Voyage: Kirkland, Washington → Madison Park, Seattle, Washington
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: 125 ft
Condition: Hull remains identified by side-scan sonar and diver video.
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: 2002
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 47.66° N 122.21° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Kirkland, Washington
Region: Lake Washington

General area only: coordinate of Carillon Point (formerly Houghton), the named place off which this vessel is recorded as lost in 1900, not a surveyed wreck position.