ROCKLAND — The Captain Richard G. Spear ferry made its first official run Friday afternoon to service Vinalhaven.
The new $10.2 million ferry was launched on April 9, 2021 at the Washburn & Doughty shipyard in East Boothbay, but the ship was not delivered to the Maine State Ferry Service dock in Rockland until mid- January 2022.
There is always a delay when a newly built vessel arrives for ferry service as the local US Coast Guard Marine Inspection Officer must issue the initial inspection certificate and crews must be trained. Additionally, the ferry service must develop periodic testing procedures in accordance with Coast Guard regulations.
Spear will join the Captain E. Frank Thompson serving Vinalhaven located 15 miles off Rockland. Around 45,000 passengers use Vinalhaven ferries each year.
The ship is named after Captain Spear, who died in 2018 at the age of 96.
Spear was the first employee of the Maine State Ferry Service and helped establish the old ferry terminal and the next that currently serves people traveling from Vinalhaven, North Haven, and Matinicus Islands. He was director of the ferry service for 30 years, retiring in 1989.
He remained a member of the ferry service’s advisory board until his death.
Spear helped guide legislation through the Maine legislature to create the Port District in 1954 to oversee freight and passenger transportation for Rockland. He was elected to the Port District in 1954 and the townspeople re-elected him every four years. He was president until his death.
The Rockland man was a 1943 graduate of the Maine Maritime Academy.
Photo by Stephen Betts
Photo by Stephen Betts
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