Tug LUNA
Type: Harbor Tug
Length: 98 feet
Address for Inquiries:
Luna was the first diesel-electric vessel in the world built for a commercial tugboat company. Using diesel engines to power an electric drive was a revolution that brought a dramatic improvement to a tugboat's efficiency and maneuverability. Luna's colorful career spanned over 40 years, covering an important period in the commercial development of Boston Harbor. She is believed to be the last full-sized wood-hulled harbor tug on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. Luna was requisitioned by the U.S. Navy in World War II. During this period, she participated in the launch of warships, tended ships at the Charlestown Navy Yard, assembled convoys, and rescued ships torpedoed and damaged in coastal waters. She took the lead in Boston's Tall Ships celebrations before retiring in 1971. Luna's fortunes declined over the next two decades to the brink of destruction. In 1992 she sank in the Charles River where she sat for over a year before being raised. The Luna Preservation Society took possession of her in March 1995. An extensive restoration of the tug has been completed. She is open for visiting on selected Saturdays at her berth on the east side of Commonwealth Pier in South Boston. She will become the flagship of Boston Harbor and will be used to teach technology, construction, trades and ecology. Luna is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a National Historic Landmark. 
Luna, 1999 Return to the HNSA Home Page.
|
