Strawberry Festival, boating and history enthusiasts should plan to chart a course to the Quartermaster Yacht Club (QYC) this weekend and take a tour of the MV Lotus for a step back in time to the Puget Sound of the early 20th century.
The 92-foot long, 102-ton boat is 106 years old and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built for Maurice McMicken, publisher of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper, attorney and legal counsel to the state legislature and developer of Seattle’s first cable car.
Naval architects designed it to cruise the Inside Passage to Alaska, and it was launched in 1909 during the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition — a world’s fair held in Seattle to publicize the development of the Pacific Northwest — complete with Tiffany lighting, Rookwood tile and leaded glass windows. At the time, it was the largest power yacht on the West Coast.
Meticulously restored and maintained, the vessel is normally moored at the Historic Ships Wharf on Lake Union and functions as a bed and breakfast, small event venue and floating museum.
And while not available for cruise charters, its owners and the foundation that maintains it have been looking for ways to introduce the boat to more people.
“I was working on setting up a presentation during a rendezvous for our members in Port Townsend, and the woman who I was working with turned out to be the Lotus’ owner,” said Lynn Buscaglia, a QYC member and board trustee. “And she approached me about bringing the Lotus to Quartermaster.”
The yacht club got behind the idea, in part to raise its own profile.
“We have this new marina, new docks and a great sailing program, but the club feels a bit hidden from the rest of the island,” Buscaglia said. “We’d love for people to come and see what we have to offer.”
The yacht club along with the Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association, the Keepers of Point Robinson and J.R. Crawford of Windermere-Vashon, are sponsoring the floating museum’s visit as well as a float in Saturday’s parade. Look for yacht club Commodore Buzz Blick at the float’s helm, and Captain Joe Wubbold of the Keepers of Point Robinson and several period representatives, including Admiral Vashon, to join him.
The Lotus will be moored at the yacht club and open for tours from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and QYC’s sailing camp has sponsored a Strawberry Festival shuttle stop at the club for convenience. Tours are free, though the Lotus Foundation accepts donations.
