The Potomac, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s beautifully restored “floating White House,” is docked at Jack London Square and provides a thrilling mix of history, fun and a local tie-in to Elvis Presley.
The Presidential Yacht, Potomac was once used as the “floating White House” by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. These days she can frequently be seen cruising Bay Area waters or visited at Jack London Square but now she needs your help.
By Frances Bellows
Published: March, 2011
Since its 1995 public debut, the Potomac has offered an amazing chance to experience the end of the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the WWII years while standing on the same decks as the key players. Between 1939 and 1945, FDR used this yacht as a venue to charm visiting royalty and as a treasured escape from White House cooking. The White House head chef believed that if food couldn’t be boiled, it shouldn’t be eaten. Food aficionados can understand why our 32nd President boarded this cutter at every opportunity to enjoy fresh seafood and a fine martini.
In addition to 24 history cruises a year, the Potomac has 14 specialty events that continue the tradition of fine food in a beautiful setting. Picture a Mothers Day tour of the Bay complete with an excellent buffet and Mimosas. (Yes, dear family, that is a hint.)
Professor Glenn Gordinniere, director of Mystic Seaport’s maritime education, recently told me that the City’s Hyde Street Pier has the world’s largest collection of historically accurate vessels afloat. For a truly unique experience, board the Potomac for a water-side view of these vessels, including the 1886 square-rigger Balclutha and the colorful Chinese junk Grace Quan.
For families, the best news is that the docent-led dockside tour is free to children under 12. The Potomac has also been an unsung hero to our public school children by offering 16 cruises a year, complete with curriculum, reading materials and activities for teachers. These are completely free.
The docents are among the dedicated 112 volunteers who keep the Potomac shipshape. Just to shake up our image of docents as kindly retirees, the ship’s youngest docent is 14 years old and recently gave his first solo talk to a group of 100 Girl Scouts. The Potomac Visitor Center Museum even has programs for college-age Museum Studies interns.
The private charters, special cruises, and dockside events allow all of us to party like kings and queens. Literally. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth cruised with FDR to George Washington’s home at Mt. Vernon. And speaking of kings, Elvis Presley later owned the yacht before donating it to Danny Thomas’ St. Jude’s hospital. You can stand on the very same deck as the smiling Elvis in a 1964 photo.
What’s next for the Potomac? There’s good news and bad news.
The good news is that there are the incredibly fun events coming up, such as an Opening Day on the Bay cruise with characters such as Emperor Norton, Lily Coit, Jack London and Sarah Winchester. Talks are in the works for a spring micro-brewery dockside event and in honor of FDR’s fondness for a really good martini.
The bad news: The Potomac is one very classy gem in the crowning glory that is the San Francisco Bay, but it is facing a number of serious challenges. A required dry docking, increased port fees and other expenses have torpedoed it below the waterline and are threatening its continued operations. Considering all of the benefits the ship offers, its financial needs are very modest—for example, educational programs for a year add up to only $63,000. The ship and her crew are reaching out to the community for support in these times.
Michael Roosevelt recently stated in a letter to potential donors, “No one planned for two years of recession, which has essentially cut the Potomac’s operating income by 50 percent and has made it extremely difficult to attract corporate giving. The result is that we have almost completely exhausted our rainy day reserves. It has put us in a position where we must call on all of those who love the Potomac and the era she represents to help.” If you think that you can help support this worthy cause, please contact Marti Burchell at mburchell@usspotomac.org or (510) 627-1667.
Another easy, free and enjoyable way to get acquainted with the Potomac is to enter a contest to win four free tickets to Fleet Week (a $500.00 value). You can upload a photo or short video on, beside or about this gorgeous, floating National Historic Landmark by June 30 to
info@usspotomac.org. Facebook friends will vote on the winner and get the chance to win two free dockside tours. For more details, visit www.usspotomac.org.
The Potomac also offers 16 free cruises a year to our public school children, complete with curriculum, reading materials and activities for teachers.
