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Historic vessel keeps up with growing trend.
NEWPORT HARBOR – For years, the historic S.S. Michigan tugboat has been a landmark in Newport Harbor, catching the attention of locals and visitors alike who revel in its cartoon-like features. Despite its vintage look, the vessel recently caught up with the times when it was converted to become a “green vessel.”


Photo by: Ambrosia Sarabia photo
Environmentally Friendly — But Still a Character — From left, Mike DeFelice of Bad Dog Marine helped electrically repower Gay and Bill Kelly’s beloved Newport Harbor character boat, S.S. Michigan.



Worth the Work — Bill Kelly read up on the latest conversion kits before choosing one from SolidNav.com. Since its installation aboard S.S. Michigan, the Kellys have experienced smooth, quiet cruising.

After years of dealing with a faulty engine and high fuel prices, owners of the 1941 double-ended wooden Monterey mackerel fishing boat, Bill and Gay Kelly, decided to throw out the vessel’s old Atomic Four sailboat engine and replace it with a battery-operated propulsion system.

The old engine will be recycled, of course, Gay added.

“Every year, there was a problem with the motor,” said Bill, who got the idea of going green in January.

In June, Bill ordered a conversion kit from SolidNav.com, and was referred to Mike DeFelice of Bad Dog Marine in Costa Mesa. DeFelice, a supporter of alternative power systems, proved to be the “right fit,” the couple explained. Not only had he already worked on several boats in the harbor, but he had also converted his Toyota into an electric vehicle — and he now calls it an “eYota.”

“The planet needs it,” DeFelice said of electric power system installation. “It’s an exciting time: Even bigger yachts are going to it.”

After taking a look at the Kellys’ tug, DeFelice drew up some plans. By July, the boat was up and running — only this time without smelly exhaust fumes or engine noise.

“Oh, my gosh, it is so easy now,” Bill said about his first cruise aboard S.S. Michigan after the conversion.

The switch was finished just in time for the annual Fourth of July Old Glory Boat Parade at Newport Harbor’s American Legion Yacht Club, where S.S. Michigan won yet another award in its long list of honors. With the turn of a switch and positioning of a lever, Bill and Gay made their way to the club, and joined in the boat parade.

As always, the bright yellow, red and black boat received a lot of attention, especially from locals who know the history of this unusual boat. Some folks have joked that, in the vessel’s earlier days, it was better known for its time underwater than on the water.

Breaking old habits, the tug cruised through the two-and-a-half-hour parade and pulled into the docks with plenty of battery power to spare. When the Kellys told other boaters of their recent repower, many asked to look at the system and wanted information on how to convert their own vessels.

“This system is perfect for cruising around the harbor,” DeFelice said, about the 48-volt system he installed in S.S. Michigan.

Conversions depend on vessel size, speed and the amount of time and distance boat owners want to travel. But for cruising at 5 knots in the harbor, the electric propulsion system is right on track, Bill explained.

“If you are out on the bay more than five hours, you are ready to go in,” Bill explained. “You’ve already gone everywhere.”

The $8,000 the Kellys spent on the electric power conversion was well worth it, the couple said. They enjoy the reduction in noise, odor and carbon footprint.

“Besides, it would be $12,000 just to put in a new (conventional) engine — and then there would be the added cost of maintenance,” Bill said. “It was cheaper in every way to go electric.”

Docking with ease is another perk, Gay added. She has been S.S. Michigan’s first mate since they purchased the boat in 1997.

S.S. Michigan has been a handful since the boat first entered the harbor in 1941, when William James Michall built the fishing boat. It was originally named, W.J. before the boat was sold to George Bomay of Michigan in 1943. Bomay, who used the tug for bay fishing, quickly changed her name to S.S. Michigan — a move that later owners blamed for many years of bad luck.

In 1952, after being sold to Dick Shaw for $100, the vessel ended up on the bottom of the harbor near the Lido bridge. Shaw and fellow Disney cartoonist Bruce Mack refloated S.S. Michigan and transformed her into a bar-hopping vessel.

In 1955, she carried her owner and members of the wacky “Balboa Island Punting and Sculling Club” from bar to bar — and S.S. Michigan soon became the original “character” of the Newport Harbor Character Boat Parade.

The unusual vessel’s years of hard partying caught up with her from time to time. S.S. Michigan sank six times during 24 years under Shaw’s ownership. Over the next 21 years, the tug was purchased then sold to several other owners, who also experienced bad luck: The vessel sank two more times before being placed on the market in 1997.

Though they knew the many trials and tribulations that S.S. Michigan had endured through the years, the Kellys had loved the vessel from afar for many years. They were more than willing to take their chances when they purchased the tug from Alex Dale.

Since then, the tug sprang an oil leak four days into the Newport Harbor Christmas Boat Parade, her transmission went kaput and she has experienced innumerable engine problems.

To rid the vessel of her bad luck, the Kellys arranged for S.S. Michigan to undergo an “exorcism” in 1988, during which an old Norwegian sea captain’s ghost was freed after creating havoc on her for years, the couple said. True or not, S.S. Michigan has, since then, managed to stay out of trouble.

Is this tug old? Sure. But boring? Never.

Now, with her recent all-electric repower, this Newport Harbor mascot has added yet another unique characteristic to her long list of one-of-a-kinds.

“It has so much history, and we wanted it so badly,” Gay said. “It’s been so much fun to just go out on a cruise and hear everyone screaming, ‘Oh, my god, it’s the Michigan,’” she explained.

When asked how long they plan to keep the boat, the answer was a no-brainer.

“Until we die,” Bill said. And after that, “It will probably be willed to someone.”

This article first appeared in the October 2008 issue of The Log Newspaper. All or parts of the information contained in this article might be outdated.