About
History Timeline
For nearly 145 years, Shaver Transportation has led the tug and barge industry on the Columbia Snake River System. Explore the visual timeline below to trace Shaver’s journey.
1880s
In 1880 George Washington Shaver and partners founded People’s Freighting Company. Our first vessel was the steamboat Manzanillo, which we piloted on the Willamette and Columbia rivers between Portland and Clatskanie, Oregon.
1890s
In 1893 Shaver Transportation was incorporated by George W. Shaver and his sons James and George. Our next two steam-powered sternwheelers were the George W. Shaver and the Sarah Dixon, named for his wife.
Shaver soon shifted away from transporting people and cargo in favor of barge and log towing.
1910s
By 1910, log towing was Shaver’s main venture and our fleet grew to seven tugs. That same year, Shaver built its first propeller-driven, gasoline-powered boat, the Echo. The company then began using its tugs to assist large ships in the booming Portland Harbor.
1920s
In the 1920s, our fleet grew to ten tugs. In 1926 we converted the steam–powered stern-wheeler Shaver into a twin-screw, semi-tunnel diesel tug. Following Shaver’s lead, diesel power and scientific hull designs soon dominated towing on the Northwest waterways.
1930s
In 1935, Shaver’s Cascades maneuvered Cascade Rapids with the largest load of wheat ever brought down the Columbia River.
In 1936, Shaver moved its headquarters from St. Johns to 3850 NW Front Ave. Headquarters moved again in 1956 to our present location at 4900 NW Front Ave.
In 1937, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the Bonneville Dam – the first dam on the Columbia River equipped with a navigational lock. Shaver responded by providing service as far as The Dalles.
1940s
In the 1940s, the United States entered World War II and shipyards in Portland and Vancouver worked around the clock. Shaver assisted more than 1,000 ship launchings during that time.
1950s
By 1950, Shaver Transportation operated two-dozen steel-hulled diesel engine tugs, which performed ship assist and log towing assignments.
1960s
By 1960, Shaver had established itself in ship assist work in Portland’s booming harbor and in ocean towing coastwise from Alaska to the Panama Canal.
1970s
By 1975 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had completed eight lock and dams, allowing Shaver to barge wheat from the farms of Washington and Idaho down the Snake River to deep draft Columbia River export terminals. This lock and dam system prompted Shaver to start a barge-building program to meet the demands for service from Portland, Oregon to Lewiston, Idaho.
1980s
In 1981 Shaver commissioned construction of the ship assist tractor tug Portland. It featured the latest innovation in propulsion – Z-drive technology – the first of its kind in the country.
As more grain facilities opened, Shaver established a permanent moorage in Rainier to better serve our Kalama, Longview, Port Westward and Astoria ship customers.
1990s
In the 1990s Shaver built three new high powered tugs: the Vancouver, Deschutes and Willamette. All three tugs had sophisticated features such as electric winches, cranes, and Z-drive technology.
2000s
In 2000, Shaver expanded our grain barge fleet by 40 percent. We also introduced a cold iron mooring facility at Port of Portland T6 and modernized and expanded our Rainer facility. Shaver upgraded the fleet by repowering twelve boats, designed two state-of-the-art tractor tugs, Sommer S (2012) and Samantha S (2019). For upriver grain barging we acquired the Lincoln (2017), and the Randy S (2019).
2020s
In 2020, the company completed construction of its 4040 sq. foot Operations Center at Shaver’s headquarters.
In 2023 we built the tractor tug Shaver, and the following year we built the 4,000 hp upriver tug Capt. Steve.
Shaver is working on a cold iron facility in Kalama, WA and a new Tier 4 tug, Heather S, is due in 2025.
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