The Puget Sound mosquito fleet was a large number of private transportation companies running smaller passenger and freight boats on Puget Sound and nearby waterways and rivers. This large group of steamers and sternwheelers plied the waters of Puget Sound, stopping at every waterfront dock. The historical period defining the beginning and end of the mosquito fleet is ambiguous, but the peak of activity occurred between the First and Second World Wars.
The steamboat Defiance operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. In later years this vessel was called Kingston.
The steamboat Dart operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.
The steamboat Monticello (2) operated in the early 1900s as part of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. The vessel went through several reconstructions and remained in service until 1962, when she was lost in Alaska waters. Her later names were Penaco and Sea Venture. (This Puget Sound steamer should not be confused with the smaller Monticello, which also ran on Puget Sound, but was built in 1895 for Captain Z.J. Hatch of the Monticello Steamship Company.
Joshua Green was an American sternwheeler captain, businessman, and banker. He rose from being a seaman to being the dominant figure of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet, then sold out his interests and became a banker. Living to the age of 105 and active in business almost to the end of his life, he became an invaluable source of information about the history of Seattle and the Puget Sound region. According to Nard Jones, Green was one of the city of Seattle's last fluent speakers of Chinook Jargon, the pidgin trade language of the Pacific Northwest.
The steamship Calista was a small steamboat of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.
Sentinel was a small wooden propeller-driven steamship of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.
Fairy was a small wooden sidewheel-driven steamship placed into service on Puget Sound in 1853. Fairy was the first steam-powered vessel to conduct regularly scheduled service on Puget Sound.
Zephyr was a sternwheel steamboat of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.
State of Washington was a sternwheel steamboat of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet, later transferred to the Columbia River.
Northern Light was a sternwheel steamboat of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet and was active in the early 1900s.
Monte Cristo was a sternwheel steamboat which was operated in Puget Sound and the coastal rivers of the state of Washington and the province of British Columbia.
Audrey was a small steam vessel that operated on Puget Sound in the early part of the 1900s. The vessel was converted to a diesel tug and operated as such for many years on Puget Sound.
Iola was a small steam vessel that operated on Puget Sound from 1885 to 1915.
Victor was a steam-powered tugboat built in 1893 in Tacoma, Washington. This vessel should not be confused with the similarly named Victor II, also active in Puget Sound.
Burton was a steamboat built in 1905 in Tacoma, Washington and which was in service on Puget Sound until 1924.
The Merchants Transportation Company was a shipping firm that operated on Puget Sound from 1905 to 1929. This company should not be confused with the similarly named Merchants Transportation Company of Olympia, formed in 1874 and a completely separate firm.
Concordia was a steamboat that ran on Puget Sound from 1930 to 1976. Although later converted to diesel power, Concordia was the last inland commercial steamboat ever built on either Puget Sound or the Columbia river.
The Carlisle II is the oldest of only two operational examples of a Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet vessel. They were once part of a large fleet of small passenger and freight carrying ships that linked the islands and ports of Puget Sound in Washington State in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The steamboat Arcadia, built in 1929, was one of the last commercial steamboats placed into service on Puget Sound. The vessel later served as a prison tender under the name J.E. Overlade, and after that, as Virginia VI, as an excursion vessel.
