This old girl really has gotten around in her 60 plus years. The vessel was built as a one-of-a-kind in 1953 in Jeffersonville, Indiana and operated as a tour boat under the names Miss Green River on the Tennessee River from Chattanooga, Tennessee and Sea Witch on the Mississippi River from Vicksburg, Mississippi.
In 1986 she was moved to Sodus Point, New York, and operated on Sodus Bay off the south shore of Lake Ontario by the Arney Family. Her paddlewheel was removed and she was renamed Rose Lummis after Madame Rose Lummis, a prominent Sodus Point Catholic missionary in the mid 19th century who was known as the woman “who did the work of eleven priests”.
In 2001 she was purchased by Captain John Cooper who completed major renovation work including the completion of the upper observation deck. Captain John kept the name Rose Lummis and ran tours in Sodus Bay. Later, he moved the tour to Spencerport, New York where it operated on the Erie Canal and Geneva, New York, and where he offered tours of Seneca Lake.
In October 2015, after an extensive countrywide search, she was purchased by Candice & Kevin Mortara and Christine & Todd Williams. Hauled by truck for 845 miles to the shores of the Fox River, she is undergoing extensive renovations during the winter/spring of 2016 and will be ready for tours of the Fox River in May 2016.
Follow our Facebook Page as we post our progress in breathing new life into her. Our work is approved by the U.S. Coast Guard and though she looks rough as we take her apart to replace all the steel that has rusted over the years, believe in the power of TLC.
She is 55 feet long, 14 feet wide and has 2 decks. The main deck in enclosed with windows that open to allow the great river air to cool you as Mother Nature intended. There is a head (restroom) on board, and running hot and cold water.
The main deck is friendly to those with mobility difficulties, but is not strictly ADA compliant due to U.S. Coast Guard regulations that require lips to keep water out in case of high seas. We will work to accommodate all needs, however, and do our best to turn no one away. The top deck is not accessible except by stairs.
She is USCG Certified to accept 49 paying passengers. We like to limit it to 45 for comfort sake, so we are able to fit everyone into the main deck if it should happen to start raining.
A cash bar will be available for all cruises, with nice wines, local beer, and drink specials.
She has a flat bottom, and was specifically made as a riverboat. We stay in the river, and that means the ride is pretty stable. Sea sickness should not be a problem, but is always possible.
