South Ferry (Shelter Island)

Last updated
The South Ferry Company, Inc.
Company type Private Company
Industry Transportation
Founded1830;195 years ago (1830)
Headquarters Shelter Island, New York
Area served
 Long Island, New York
Key people
Clifford Clark, William Clark, Samuel G. Clark
ProductsFerry service
Website https://www.southferry.com/

The South Ferry Company, Inc., locally referred to as South Ferry, operates a year-round [1] public ferry service between Shelter Island and North Haven on Long Island, New York. [2] With the similer North Ferry service to Greenport, It forms part of New York State Route 114, which also carries New York State Bicycle Route 114.

Contents

History

The service that would become the modern company began in the 1790s, [1] [3] though various forms of informal ferry service had existed in the area for centuries beforehand. [4]

In 1830, Samuel G. Clark, who had already been operating an informal service there for some time, officially founded a company through which he could run the ferry. [5]

The first decades of the company are not well-documented, but the Clark family has owned the company continuously since at least 1845, making it possibly the oldest continuously family-owned ferry service in the United States. [6]

In 1906, The company was formally incorpoated under New York State law. [7]

In 2022, the company was added to the New York State Historic Business Preservation Registry (HBPR). [8]

Current operations

As of 2025, the route is served by 4-6 departures per direction per hour. The ferry runs 18 hours a day in the winter and 19 hours a day in the summer, 365 days a year. [9]

In April 2025, the Shelter Island Reporter estimated that the route carries 1.25 million passengers and 750,000 vehicles annually. [10]

List of boats

Current

Vessel nameBuilder (location) [11] DeliveredStatus
Capt. Bill Clark [12] Muir Brothers Drydock (Port Dalhousie, Ontario)1951Reserve
Lt. Joe Theinert [13] Chesapeake Shipbuilding (Salisbury, Maryland)1998Active
Sunrise [14] Blount Boats (Warren, Rhode Island)2002Active
Southside [15] (recently renamed Capt. Nick Morehead) [16] Blount Boats (Warren, Rhode Island)2009Active
Southern Cross [17] Blount Boats (Warren, Rhode Island)2020Active

Past

Vessel NameDeliveredDecommissioned
Capt. Ed Cartwright [18] 19602008
North Haven [18] 19592008

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Marks, Peter (6 July 1994). "Island Gatekeepers; Across Two Centuries on the Ferry". The New York Times . Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  2. ↑ "Review of South Ferry Company, Inc. Petition for 2019 Rate Increase". Suffolk County Legislature Budget Review Office. 31 May 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
  3. ↑ "Shelter from the Storm". shortescapes.net. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  4. ↑ "Shelter Island Ferries (North and South)". LongIslandGuide.com. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  5. ↑ Dempsey, Susan Carey (7 October 2021). "Clark family and South Ferry honored for tradition of dedicated service". Shelter Island Reporter. Retrieved 14 March 2025.
  6. ↑ "Transportation". shelterislandtown.gov. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  7. ↑ Kotz, Stephen J. (19 April 2022). "Hildreth's, South Ferry Named to State Registry Of Historic Businesses". 27 East. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  8. ↑ "Schedule". southferry.com. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  9. ↑ "Shelter Island ferries sailing along in the 21st century: Challenges, history, and commitment at the Reporter's Forum". Shelter Island Reporter. April 14, 2025. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
  10. ↑ "Ferries Built in U.S. Shipyards Since WWII". shipbuildinghistory.com. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
  11. ↑ "Capt. Bill Clark 329". MarineLink. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  12. ↑ "Lt Joe Theinert 329". MarineLink. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  13. ↑ "Sunrise 329". MarineLink. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  14. ↑ "Southside 329". MarineLink. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  15. ↑ Brush, David (1 August 2023). "South Ferry boat renamed to honor Nick Morehead: Large gathering to celebrate his life". Shelter Island Reporter. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  16. ↑ "Blount Boats Wins Ferry Build Contract". MarineLink. 7 September 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  17. 1 2 "How two boats saved South Ferry". Shelter Island Reporter. 24 September 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2025.

41°2′42″N72°19′2″W / 41.04500°N 72.31722°W / 41.04500; -72.31722

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