Red and White Fleet (Firm)

The San Francisco Bay cruise line Red & White Fleet was founded in 1892 when 17-year-old boatman Thomas Crowley invested $80 in a used Whitehall boat. He transported goods, supplies and people 22 hours a day and soon expanded his fleet. The new business was incorporated as the Crowley Launch and Tugboat Company in 1906. While many ferry services halted operations after the 1906 earthquake, Crowley's continued and, even, increased. He expanded his business by purchasing the Piper-Aden company, which put him in charge of a fleet of scow schooners, and by entering the tugboat business. Crowley's company was instrumental in the execution of the Panama Pacific International Exposition in 1915, and during World War I, the company's vessels carried goods between San Francisco, South America and Australia. After the war ended, Crowley's influence over the shipping and boating industries on the San Francisco Bay grew. He became general manager of one of his primary competitors and gained financial control of several others. Tourist interest in visiting the historic battleships in the Bay, as well as the opening of the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges and the Golden Gate International Exposition of 1939, spurred further expansion of Crowley's fleet. In the late 1940s, he repainted his vessels red and white and adopted the company's present name. The sphere of passenger services continued to expand throughout the 1950s, as the Red & White fleet introduced its ferries from San Francisco to Tiburon and increased the frequency of its sightseeing trips. The company continued to grow over subsequent decades, introducing new service routes and expanding its fleet. Tom Escher, Crowley's grandson, bought the company in 1997.