In 1926, Skansie Shipbuilding Company launched purse seine vessel Veteran in Gig Harbor. Built for Peter Skansie, Veteran is a beautifully preserved sample of one of the nearly 100 Skansie-built purse seiners, one of the most iconic and recognizable vessel designs to emerge from Gig Harbor and Puget Sound. Veteran is one of the only remaining Skansie-built purse seiners today.
Peter Skansie, who immigrated from Croatia to Gig Harbor in the late 1800s, was an early homesteader who was later joined by his brothers. They fished commercially and established Skansie Shipbuilding Company. Peter fished Veteran for many years and eventually passed the boat down to his son Vincent. In 1973, Vincent fell ill and Jake Bujacich took over as captain. Jake ran the boat until 1978 when it was sold to Whitney Fidalgo Cannery. Francis Barcott purchased Veteran from the Cannery. In 1996 Nick Fahey took ownership and fished the boat until 2007. Nick took special care of Veteran and spent a great deal of time and money beautifully restoring her. Veteran is still equipped to commercially purse seine in Puget Sound today.
Veteran was donated to Gig Harbor BoatShop in 2017. The BoatShop maintains and provides public access to Veteran in order to further its mission to perpetuate working waterfront skills, uses, and traditions at the historic Eddon Boatyard and aboard classic vessels of Puget Sound. A variety of educational programming will allow community members and visitors to have hands-on experiences on board while authentically engaging with Gig Harbor’s working waterfront heritage. Skansie Shipbuilding Company and Veteran both play a strong role in Gig Harbor’s history, and it is fitting that Veteran has returned to the place she was built nearly a century ago.”