Five Generations of the Angel Island Ferry

Bay Crossings recently sat down with Captain Maggie McDonogh, Owner/Proprietor of the Angel Island Ferry Company.

What’s it like running the Angel Island Ferry? Walk us through an average day.

On an average day, we’re dealing with several hundred people, all with a variety of needs and interests going to and from island. We’re also dealing with the boats, how to maintain them and keep them looking nice. And our basic thrust regularly is serving the people however they want to be served. We just want to make everyone feel happy and welcomed and want to return to us.

We have three boats. They vary in size from our smallest, the Bonita, which carries 118. She was a water taxi that was built in San Diego, shipped over and used on Lake Mead and we had her trucked up about four years ago. She’s been an excellent addition for us. She replaced the Herron, which was an old Mare Island ferry, which in turn had replaced dad’s first boat, the Gaycin, which was his original boat that carried 50 people. The big boat that we have was built and launched in Stockton in 1974 and she carries 400 people. She’s the one that we mainly use in the peak season to and from Angel Island as well as the one we use for the sunset cruise. And then our newest one is the Tamalpais, which we purchased up in Seattle and brought down from Alaska Cruise Lines. She’s more of a luxury yacht, and people really seem to like her. We use her for historic cruises and corporate parties and charters and things like that.

That’s correct. I drive all three of them.

How long a run is it out there to Angel Island?

It’s about ten to fifteen minutes and the round trip fare, which includes State Park entrance fee, is $5.50 for adults and $4.25 for children ages 5-11 and an additional dollar for bicycles. We operate year round, though of course in summer and the peak season we run a lot more frequently. When we get into the fall and the off-season, we run mostly for groups on the weekdays and we do offer regular service on the weekend.

So is this a growth business? Are you planning an IPO any time soon?

Well, we are growing, particularly with our charters and narrative tours that I do with the Tamalpias. We’re also considering doing an environmental program where we’re going to have school children come to the boat and take them out to where they can actually handle bay animals and release them. I wouldn’t say we’re growing at an outstanding rate but it is a nice continuous upswing.

Tell the story of the McDonogh family the Angel Island Ferry.

Well I’ll tell you as best I can. My father tells it better than I do. Basically, my great grandfather came to California and was hunting ducks out on McDonogh Island near Petaluma and going down into San Francisco and selling them to the poultry markets. And he came down here to Tiburon when the railroad came in. I guess that must’ve been in the late 1800’s. He opened Sam’s Boarding House and Clam Chowder House, which is directly behind our current location on the dock. And he catered to the railroad workers and the local residents. At that time, Tiburon was a very, very lively place. He had seven children and one of them was Sam McDonogh, which was my grandfather who, in turn, met and married Lillian Williamson.