The Friends of Plum and Pilot Islands would like to extend a special ‘thank you’ to the Jackson Harbor Maritime Museum for their work on The Valient. Their plans are to have the cabin completed and weatherproofed by fall and the exterior of the boat painted. Next year they will be cleaning up the interior so visitors can look in.
The Valient was designed by Captain George Moe, who served on Plum Island, when orders came from the government to help with the mail across the Door when necessary. Captain Moe, being a thoroughly trained seaman and well versed in the art of boat building, supervised the construction of the new boat.
On April 21, 1927 the Door County News reported:
The Plum Island coast guard station is one of the busiest stations on the Great Lakes. With 111 calls made to date, all records for assistance calls have been broken
One of the big factors that has made it possible for this active station to operate in winter time thru (sic) ice and unfavorable conditions is its powerful boat. This ice crusher has been christened the “Bull” by members of the crew and those that have witnessed its performance in ice and adverse conditions state that it more than lives up to its name.
Although called upon in some of the bitterest weather conditions during the winter the boat and its gallant crew encountered many obstacles and as yet have not found any conditions that the “Bull” was not equal to. The great majority of calls came from the mail carrier in Door passage who had many thrilling experiences in the ice flows during the past winter. The members of the Plum Island station and their powerful boat assisted him out of many dangerous and difficult positions.’
Also in 1927 Captain Sollman, of the Plum Island Station wrote this poem in honor of her:
The Plum Island Bull
The “BULL” ship to sail
The ice-bound waters of Death’s Door,
A friend of the native,
A friend of its crew.
To the top of the world,
The “BULL” will go,
On its mission of duty,
In the land of snow.
Brings food to the hungry,
Brings aid to the sick;
Goes to the rescue
Of disabled ships.
A ship for humanity,
A ship for demands,
To serve in its hardships
This great Northland.
To Washington Island it means
Needed comfort and care,
A ship to be proud of –
A crew that will dare
The flag that it flies,
Well known to man –
That of the Nation
Of dear Uncle Sam.
So, long live the “BULL”
To carry the mail
For Washington Island,
That great Wonderland.
The BULL can be viewed outside at the Jackson Harbor Maritime Museum on Washington Island.
Restoration photos courtesy of Amy Lesnjak.
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