{"nrhp_refnum":"83001959","name":"BOECKLING, G.A., (side-paddlewheel steamboat)","other_names":["The Boeckling"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Jackson Street Dock","address_restricted":false,"city":"Sandusky","county":"Erie County","state":"OH","lat":41.457976802000076,"lon":-82.71487148499995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-03-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel-hulled, double-ended, side-loading side-paddlewheel steamboat built in 1909 by Great Lakes Engineering Works at Ecorse, Michigan, for the Bay Transportation Company. It is moored at the Jackson Street Dock in Sandusky, Ohio.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is the only American side-paddlewheel steamboat remaining on the Great Lakes and one of only two left, the other being the Trillium in Toronto. It is considered unique because it loaded passengers from the sides rather than the bow and stern. It also represents the era of Great Lakes day-boat travel, carrying millions of passengers between Sandusky and Cedar Point from 1909 to 1951.","narrative":"G.A. Boeckling was a steel-hulled, double-ended side-paddlewheel steamboat built in 1909 at Ecorse, Michigan, by Great Lakes Engineering Works for the Bay Transportation Company. For 43 years, from 1909 through 1951, she ferried passengers, mail and some freight across Sandusky Bay between Sandusky and the Cedar Point resort, covering an estimated 350,000 miles. Because she had a pilothouse at each end, she ran half her trips in reverse, saving time on each crossing. She was loaded from the sides, a feature the nomination considers unique among Great Lakes ferries. After 1951 she served as a floating warehouse in Wisconsin until she was towed back to Sandusky in 1982. Her engine, boiler and paddlewheels had been removed, but the hold, main deck, second deck and oak-paneled cabin remained largely intact. A restoration based on the original plans was under way, with plans for use as part of a marine museum. She was considered the only American boat of her type left on the Great Lakes.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Great Lakes Engineering Works, Ecorse, Mich.","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Unoccupied and undergoing restoration in 1982 after return to Sandusky; engine, boiler, paddlewheels and some fittings had been removed during use as a floating warehouse. A handwritten note at the end of the document says the boat burned in August 1989.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:15.213326-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/83001959.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71988170","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/erie-county/boeckling-g-a-side-paddlewheel-steamboat-83001959/"}