DNR launches new Sapelo ferry

A new passenger ferry beginning service this week between Meridian and Sapelo Island is sure to make special deliveries.

The catamaran-style boat, the Katie Underwood, is named in honor of Sapelo's last midwife.

Underwood, whose parents were born into slavery on Georgia's fourth largest barrier island, delivered babies there from the 1920s through 1968.

Her duties carried her from Raccoon Bluff to Shell Hammock, west to Belle Marsh and to her own community of Hog Hammock.

Residents say she never lost a baby. Island Manager Fred Hay, with the Department of Natural Resources, said he has no count of how many babies Underwood birthed, but said it was many.

"I know there are a heap of people on Sapelo who are here through her," he said.

About 75 people now live on Sapelo, Hay said. About two-thirds of them live in Hog Hammock, with the remainder being DNR and University of Georgia staff and their families.

Those islanders rely on the ferries for the full circle of their lives, according to Hay, who lives on Sapelo with his wife and two children.

"It brings the groceries. It brings the mail," he said. "It takes expectant mothers over and brings newborns back for their first time. It carries the deceased when they're brought back for burial."

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, spent $1.5 million on the 149-passenger ferry built by Geo Shipyard of New Iberia, La.

The Katie Underwood joins the Annemarie, named for the wife of the previous owner of Sapelo Island, R.J. Reynolds, and replaces the 28-year-old Sapelo Queen ferry.

Visitors travel to Sapelo on guided DNR tours two days a week in the winter, visiting an old sugar mill, Hog Hammock, the University of Georgia Marine Institute, the old R.J. Reynolds family mansion, and the lighthouse.

The 70-foot long ferry cruises at about 25 mph with a top speed of about 31 mph. That's likely to reduce the transit time from half an hour to 20 minutes, though the ferry schedule is not expected to change, according to Hay.

The boat's main passenger cabin accommodates 102 passengers. Covered seating accommodates 48 passengers on the upper deck. Bench seating for approximately 10 passengers is also provided at the bow.

"The Katie Underwood is a great addition to our Sapelo Island Ferry Service fleet," said Noel Holcomb, commissioner, Georgia DNR. "The new ferry was built using state of the art construction providing increased comfort and safety for the passengers."

It's also likely to save fuel, according to Hay.

"Because of the catamaran design, aluminum construction and electronically injected diesels, it only uses about half the fuel of the Annemarie," he said.