This tugboat was on Olympia’s waterfront for years. Now it’s headed to the auction block
The Sandman, a 60-foot wooden tugboat that for years was moored at Percival Landing where it offered public tours, is headed to the auction block this month, Port of Olympia officials say.
The vessel, which was originally built in 1908, was hauled out of the water at the port’s Swantown Boatworks on East Bay two years ago for repairs, and there it continues to sit, racking up unpaid rent of almost $30,000, according to port information.
“Once a proud symbol of Olympia’s rich maritime heritage, the tug is now in critical need of support,” the port information reads. “Unfortunately, the Sandman Foundation has gradually dissolved, both in membership and financial capacity, and is no longer able to sustain the vessel’s upkeep.”
The auction is set for 11 a.m. July 23. The starting value of the vessel is estimated at $10,000, according to the port. If no bidders emerge, the port will become its owner 10 days after the auction.
“The boat is in bad condition,” said Mike Reid, the port’s community and economic development director prior to Monday’s port commission meeting. “And from a safety standpoint, it just can’t continue to be unmanaged.”
“I mean, it’s needing more and more bracing,” Reid said. “There could be a concern that just the integrity of the vessel could not hold at some point in time, so finding somebody that can give this thing the love that it needs to get it to the place that it needs to go to, we have to start that process.”
But if no one bids on the boat, that doesn’t necessarily spell the end for the Sandman, he said.
“If we own it, it could allow us to do other things, like find a non-profit partner that we could ultimately dedicate it to them,” he said. “I think that’s a likely process scenario. But we can’t really do anything with the boat right now because it’s not our boat.”
If someone does bid on the boat, is the port willing to help the new owner?
“All of those conversations are on the table,” he said.
“We’re hopeful that there’s a positive outcome here,” Reid said. “I mean, the history and heritage of a working waterfront is critical to us organizationally. We do not want to see anything lost, so what we’ll probably start doing here in the next couple of days is amplifying this story, so the word can get out that we’ve got to find potential interested parties that can bring some skill set and interest to this project, because we’re just running short on potential partners right now.”
Interested in learning more about the Sandman?
Visit the Port of Olympia website and read the fact sheet on the tugboat, or call the port at 360-528-8000.
This story was originally published July 15, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
