- Riverboat Discovery
The Riverboat Discovery is a tour company in
Fairbanks, Alaska which operates sternwheel riverboats on the Chena and Tanana rivers.Infobox Company
company_name = Riverboat Discovery
company_logo =
company_type =Family Business (Owned by the Binkley family)
foundation = 1950
location =Fairbanks, Alaska ,USA
key_people =
area_served =
industry =Tourism
products = River tours
revenue =
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees =
parent = Alaska Riverways, Inc.
subsid =
homepage = http://www.riverboatdiscovery.com/ | footnotes =History
The Riverboat Discovery business was founded in 1950 by Jim Binkley, a former freight riverboat captain on the
Yukon River . [Madonna, James. 1999. "Alaska Gold Trails: The Pioneers". A.P. Publishing, Fairbanks, Alaska. ISBN 1-891733-08-7, pp. 27-28] Binkley was approached in 1950 by Alaska tourism entrepreneur Chuck West, who expressed interest in a local river tour in Fairbanks, Alaska, and asked if Binkley could provide such a service. [Sturgis, Ken. 1988. "Four Generations on the Yukon". Epicenter Press, Fairbanks, Alaska. ISBN 0-945397-01-1, p. 38] Binkley initially operated a small converted missionary boat, the "Godspeed", on tours of the rivers near Fairbanks.The company's first sternwheeler,
Discovery I , was built by Jim Binkley in his backyard in 1955 to accommodate more passengers. Later, more riverboats were added to the Discovery fleet;Discovery II was converted from a freighting steamboat in 1971, andDiscovery III was built in 1987 at the Nichols Brothers Boat Builders shipyard onWhidbey Island nearSeattle, Washington .Timeline
1898: Charles M. Binkley comes to Alaska during the Gold Rush, builds boats on the Yukon river.
1940: Jim Binkley goes to work as a deckhand on the "Idler", a 62-foot sternwheel riverboat.
1942-1945: Jim Binkley is employed by the Army running freighting riverboats on Alaska's rivers.
1950: Jim Binkley starts a tour business on the Chena and Tanana rivers using the "Godspeed", a converted missionary boat.
1955: Jim Binkley builds the "Discovery I" in his Fairbanks backyard; "Discovery I"goes into immediate passenger service.
1956-1960: The "Discovery I" is renovated during the winter months to accommodate more passengers.
1971: The "Discovery II" is built on the hull of the freighter "Yutana". "Discovery II" takes over as the Riverboat Discovery's primary tour vessel.
1986-1987: The "Discovery III" is built in Whidbey Island, Washington. "Discovery III" goes into passenger service on July 4, 1987, taking over from "Discovery II" as the company's primary tour vessel.
2000: The "Discovery II" resumes passenger service after being mothballed for approximately 10 years for renovations.
2004: The "Discovery I" resumes light-duty operation as a vessel for special tours and charters.
Present-Day Operations
As of July 2007, all three Discovery sternwheelers are still in operation. The Riverboat Discovery operates daily tours and occasional charters with the sternwheelers from mid-May until mid-September. In addition to the sternwheelers, the company also operates a sizeable gift shop at the landing from which the boats depart.
Current Fleet
External links
* [http://www.riverboatdiscovery.com/ Riverboat Discovery] official website
Notes
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
