page_title: Cyrene (steamboat)
section_title: Lake Washington passenger ferry (1900–1914)
hierarchical_section_title: Cyrene (steamboat) / Lake Washington passenger ferry (1900–1914)
caption_attribution_description: English: Steamboat Cyrene on Lake Washington, with canoe in foreground. This is probably near Leschi or Madison Park.
context_page_description: Cyrene was a steamboat that operated initially on Puget Sound and later on Lake Washington from 1891 to 1914. Cyrene and another similar vessel Xanthus were somewhat unusual in that they had clipper bows and were both originally built as yachts.
context_section_description: John L. Anderson purchased Cyrene from Colman in March 1900.  The two of them had been partners in Winnifred, in the early 1890s.  Anderson sailed the vessel to Lake Washington by way of the difficult Black River route, the only natural riverine access from Puget Sound to Lake Washington.  
  Starting in the summer of 1900, Anderson ran the vessel as a passenger ferry between Madison Park and Leschi Park.  In 1903, Anderson acquired Xanthus, another of James Coleman's yachts.  He paired her with Cyrene to create a passenger ferry service that ran every half hour between Leschi Park, Madrona Park, and Madison Park.  The fare was 10 cents.  Business was good.  Too good on occasion.  In 1907 Cyrene was fined $393.50 for taking 30 more passengers than the law allowed. In 1914 Cyrene ran from Leschi Park to various points on the west side of Mercer Island eleven times daily.
  In addition to her ferry service, Cyrene was chartered for private cruises.  For example, on July 31, 1900 the Seattle Chamber of Commerce entertained the officers of the 1st Cavalry, then encamped at Fort Lawton, on a lake cruise and dinner.  Cyrene hosted wedding parties, the Norse Club of Seattle, college fraternities, and many other private events.  On May 23, 1901 she hosted thirteen members of Congress from Ohio, on their way home from San Francisco where they had viewed the launch of the battleship Ohio.
caption: Cyrene on Lake Washington, 1905
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