People even brought their cars over on the decks of the boats.
Abney Hursey of Slidell provided a ferry service to St. Tammany parish from the New Orleans side. "People started coming over more than ever before," according to the caption to the above photo. His ferry service picked up motorists at the Chef Menteur on the New Orleans side of the island, then, after a short drive, another ferry them across the Rigolets to the Slidell side in St. Tammany! For those who wished to go over in Mississippi, there was a brand new bridge at Pearl River. In the picture above is the new ferry, the "Hiway," built in the Canulet shipyard at Slidell. This boat had a capacity of 50 cars at one time and cost nearly $50,000. The hull was of steel and the best material had been used in her throughout. It was used at the Rigolets.
The Josie
1912 Advertisement
The Pineland
An ad in a 1926 newspaper
The Madisonville At Madisonville
Oct. 22, 1921
U.S. Mail Boat
Jahncke Services Claribelle
The steamship St. Tammany furnished excellent ferry service between New Orleans and Mandeville for both passengers and automobiles. The boat could accommodate nearly 500 passengers and about 25 automobiles each trip. The trip across the lake was very enjoyable, offering music by one of the South's best bands as well as refreshments. A superb dance floor was another great attraction. The schedule time between New Orleans and Mandeville averaged two hours and twenty minutes. The boat was built in St. Tammany Parish by St. Tammany boatbuilders out of St. Tammany grown wood. (Picture from a Times Picayune special section published in 1926 and posted by Mary Busby Frindik on her Facebook page)
S.S. Balaboe -Built in Madisonville
Most of the boats we now see on the area waterways are these...
