gypsy trader

Gypsy Trader

In 1958, Thomas Stanley Hill and his wife Alice purchased the Emerson in Washington State, re-named it the Gypsy Queen, and registered it on January 29th, 1963 with the US Coast Guard in Juneau Alaska.

Thomas Stanley Hill, or known to most as Stan, had great plans for the Gypsy Fleet. Along with the Queen he also acquired a 60 foot trawler, built in 1930, and named it the Gypsy Trader. Stan’s plans didn't stop there. He then bought a small tug and named it the Gypsy Too.

The idea, that would be part of his retirement in Alaska, was to use the Queen as a fish-processing plant, the Trader as a pickup boat, and since the Queens engines had burned out 15 years prior, the Gypsy Too would tow her to Alaska. The plans were made and the boats were purchased and ready. Then disaster struck.

In 1965, the tug Gypsy Too caught fire, burned and was a total loss. Keeping the Trader close at hand, and tied to the Queen, HIlls dreams were not yet crushed.

In April of 1968, bad luck struck again to Stan and Alice, when the Trader sprung a leak and sank in 40 feet of water while the Hills were sleeping.

Despite the painful events, Stan continued with his plans and fit the Gypsy Queen with refrigeration equipment and generators. Stan was determined to make the one final voyage with the Queen.

It is not known (yet) when the Trader sank in Lake Union but now it sits in 40 feet of water at the south end of Lake Union, sitting upright.