The Delta King
In September of 1947 the Delta King was sold and
was being prepared to be sent to Seattle, Washington to be used as a fish
cannery, but the work was stopped. The King was than sold in 1952 to Kitimat
Constructors. It was to be used as a home for the workers of Alcan (Aluminum
Company of Canada Ltd.) in British Columbia. Before it was moved the steam
engines, the machinery, and the paddlewheel were removed. These were later
bought by Tom Greene as spare parts for the Delta Queen. The boat was then towed
in May 1952 to the end of Douglas Channel near Kitimat. At high tide on May 15,
1952 the Delta King was floated into a basin where she rested on solid ground
after the water was pumped away. By late 1958 the Alcan had built additional
housing for its workers and no longer needed the Delta King.
On March 2, 1959, John Kessel of Stockton, Ca, announced the
purchase of the King to be used as a theater and restaurant, hotel and museum on
the Stockton Channel. The Delta King was refloated and tugged back to her
birthplace at Stockton, arriving April 29, 1959. There ensued a never ending
battle between attorneys-at law, owners, want to be owners and more.
In the fall of 1959 was in the MGM film The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn starring Tony Randall, Judy Canova, Andy Devine, Buster Keaton,
Archie Moore and Eddie Hodges (as Huck). The King was filmed from the front and
from the distance a tugboat on her side to move her. The real stack was covered
with two phony stacks. On July 20, 1969 the Delta King was towed back to Sacramento by a
group of people interested in saving the King. The ownership of the King was
still unclear. They tried to restore the Delta King for the next 5 years. The
person claiming to be the legal owner, Gene Detgen, had the boat towed to
Collinsville, Calif. in February 1974. In the summer of 1974 the boat flooded
because she got stuck on the muddy bottom during low tide but was soon
refloated. The boat was then brought to Rio Vista for a company that soon went
bankrupt.
On February 10, 1978 M. K. Sun bought the Delta King and brought it
to Red Rock Marina in Richmond. He was planning to use her as a restaurant at
the San Francisco waterfront. In 1980 Sun got permission for his plan and
brought the boat to Lauritzen Channel. On April 3-4 the King sunk again. This
time the water was deeper and the refloating job much more difficult. It was not
until June 1982 before it was refloated. Once again fate slapped the King. In
July 1984 she was again towed back to Sacramento.
FINALLY in 1985 a restoration of the Delta King was started
and on May 20, 1989 a grand opening took place. It is now serving as a floating
(but stationary) hotel, theater and restaurant at the Old Sacramento waterfront.
Not sure but I think this
is
1974 Flooding
at Kitimat, British
Columbia
Present day photos.