Tug Buffalo

The Tug Buffalo was built in 1923 as a steam tug for the New York State Department of Public Works. After over a quarter century of continuous service as a maintenance vessel on the Canal, she was sold into private hands sometime in the 1950s, and re-powered in 1957. She remained in active commercial service until the early 1990s.

Her current engine is a historic Cooper-Bessemer direct-reversing engine, built in 1931. This engine is wonderfully representative of the transition from steam technology to early marine diesel engine technology. As a direct-reversing engine, there is no transmission and the propeller is directly connected to the engine through the shaft, and the engine must be stopped and re-started backwards when astern propulsion is required. In addition to her direct-reversing characteristics, the Buffalo is one of a dwindling number of "bell boats" still in operation. That is to say, the Captain has no direct control of the engine from the pilothouse and instead signals the engineer via a system of bells. She was donated back to New York State in 1996 by her most recent owner, Capt. Morris Reels of Brewerton, NY.

A group of dedicated volunteers began working on her restoration in 2001. With their hard work, and with the assistance of former owner Morris Reels, the restored tugboat was placed back in operating condition in 2002. During that year’s tugboat parade, cooling water mixed with lubricating oil inside the engine, suggesting much more extensive engine work needed to be performed. Several engine surveys were completed in 2003 and 2004. Due to the expense of restoring the engine, the Town of Waterford sought a more permanent interest in the vessel.

Town leaders petitioned the New York State Canal Corporation on behalf of the volunteer organization, and in February 2005 the Canal Corporation Board officially authorized the transfer of the Buffalo to the Town of Waterford, pending approval by the State Historic Preservation Office. The final transfer of the vessel was approved by OPRHP and announced at the 2005 Waterford Tugboat Roundup.

Volunteers labored long and hard during 2006 and 2007 to return the vessel to operating condition working alongside Whitworth Marine Services. Named “Tug of the Year”, the Buffalo was almost ready to go in September of 2007. At the end of a rainy Tugboat Roundup weekend, the Buffalo’s engine, long dormant, roared to life again. Click here to watch a video of the Buffalo’s engine being started in 2007.

Much work remained, however, and during the summer months of 2008 the volunteers worked with Whitworth’s Nobby Peers to prepare the venerable tug for her debut. Their work paid off, and on September 5^th of that year, the Buffalo led the tugboat parade from Albany to Waterford under her own power.

Wonderfully evocative of the tradition of smaller canal tugs at a diminutive 55’ long, the plucky Tug Buffalo is a remarkable and enduring reminder of our area’s rich maritime heritage. She is the only municipally-owned tugboat in New York State, and continues to inspire and delight crowds throughout the Capital Region. Congratulations to the selfless and unwavering volunteer corps who stuck with it through thick and thin and never, never gave up.