The beloved River Queen is back in the water after undergoing extensive repairs. Photos from the River Queen.

News Release

ELKHART — The beloved longtime vessel, the River Queen, hit the waters Tuesday, June 27. The River Queen took a whole team of volunteer groups to get her back up and running after many engine malfunctions during her tours last summer.

River Queen project manager, Tom Shoff, had gotten in contact with John Kraus, an Elkhart Area Career Center welding teacher. Back in November, Kraus helped retrofit a housing unit for smaller, more powerful engines for the River Queen.

Kraus collaborated with engine mechanics to plan a doghouse and stairs for the nearly 75-year-old vessel. Kraus opened this opportunity up for his students, an invaluable experience.

Nearly a half dozen of students jumped at the opportunity to learn on the job, even though they wouldn’t be paid for their work. The project was worked on mostly on the weekends and through spring break. The winter months impeded the project.

The workers had their work cut out for them. For most of them, this was the biggest project they had ever worked on. Additionally, every piece for the ship is custom fit, so there was no room for error. To make the project even trickier, the boat was kept on stands, which kept the boat un-level for the entirety of the project.

The River Queen has only had four owners in its lifetime. When the vessel came up for sale, nearly eight years ago, a nonprofit was founded for the purchase and remodeling of the ship. The nonprofit asked Shoff to head the project.

The history of the River Queen is quite an interesting one. The River Queen was built in 1948 by Red Macumber. The engines were the original 1955 Hercules Chris Craft engines, which Macumber salvaged off two vessels from the bottom of Lake Michigan. Macumber also used a pair of boilers that were sitting outside a hospital and he made them into the pontoons that are the haul of the boat to this day.

Following the remodeling of the vessel, the nonprofit continued to have constant mechanical issues with the original engines. Everyone involved agreed that it was time to pull the trigger and order new engines. The engines were purchased from Mercury Marine, custom order Chris Craft engines. A local marine mechanic volunteered to do the engine installation, and the EACC students handled welding the engine housing, custom stairs and rails.

The boat was slated to set sail last Monday, June 19. However, as soon as the vessel hit the water, engine problems caused leakage. The boat was pulled out of the water and was back in the shop for more repairs. It put the nonprofit in a tricky situation, because the project has cost $375,000 and the crane needed to lift the vessel in and out of the water costs $25,000 to rent every time it is needed.

On Monday, June 26, the crew had planned on putting the boat in the water. However, a crane malfunction pushed that plan back one more day. As of right now, there are no intentions of bringing the River Queen back out of the water. The boat also stays in the winter throughout the winter. To prohibit the formation of ice during the winter, the crew installed bubblers.

If all goes to the crew’s plans, the River Queen will depart at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 1 for a community Independence Day Flotilla. Boarding will be from 9:30-10:45 p.m. If weather is imminent, the event will be held Sunday, July 2.

For updates on the Elkhart River Queen, visit their website.