The Boblo boats, then and now

An aerial shot of Boblo island in July 1931. It was originally called Bois Blanc, "island of the white wood," named by the French for the birch and beech trees that covered it. Boblo is approximately three miles long and a half-mile wide, and is 18 miles downriver from downtown Detroit -- just a five-minute ferry ride from Amherstburg, Ontario.

The old steamer docks at the foot of Woodward in Detroit are seen in a photo from the turn of the 20th century. Boats carried passengers to Boblo Island and Amherstburg, Ontario.

Passengers fill the docked Boblo boat Columbia in the 1920s. In 1902 and 1910 the steamers Columbia and Ste. Claire were built. They could hold more than 2,500 passengers each, and carried as many as 800,000 visitors to Boblo Island yearly in the island's heyday in the '60s and '70s.

A bather poses at Boblo Island on the Canadian side of the Detroit River in the 1920s. The initial attractions of the island were mostly simple: a day on the river and a picnic in a park-like setting.

Bathers enjoy the water on a Boblo Island beach, circa 1920s.

The St. Andrew’s Society celebrates its Scottish heritage on Boblo in the 1920s.

In a Scottish test of strength, a man tosses a caber at a St. Andrew's Society picnic on Boblo in the 1920s.

Some lasses in Scottish gear enjoy a St. Andrew's Society picnic on Boblo Island in the 1920s.

Children play on a swing set on Boblo Island in the 1920s.

Visiters relax and watch the amusement rides on Boblo island, circa 1920s.

Boblo Island is shown from the air in this undated photo, circa 1930s.

Day-trippers enjoy a spinning amusement park ride.

The Columbia sails on a moonlit night on Aug. 15, 1940. A great part of the romance of the island lay in getting there. The trip took just over an hour, and there were moonlight cruises as well as daytime ferries.

The Ste. Claire, foreground, and Columbia dock on June 4, 1946. The boarding dock for Boblo Island in Detroit was initially at the foot of Woodward, then moved to behind Cobo Center, and eventually out of downtown to Gibraltar in 1991.

Detroit newspaper carriers wave from a Boblo boat in August 1959.

Couples enjoy a romantic ride on a Boblo boat in August 1966.

Boblo-bound passengers board a boat in Detroit on May 28, 1966.

Passengers disembark from one of the Boblo boats in July 1963.

Women play cards en route to Boblo Island on July 15, 1954. The breeze on the river provided a welcome relief from the summer heat in the days before air conditioning.

Passengers catch a cool breeze and a view of a freighter from the Boblo boat.

The Boblo steamship Ste. Claire cruises the Detroit River in May 1967.

The rides are lit up at night on Boblo Island's amusement park in 1966.

A Boblo boat passes between CKLW, the Canadian pop rock AM powerhouse station of the 1960s, and a double ferris wheel on the island.

A river's edge view of Detroit from Windsor, undated.

The Ste. Claire docks in Detroit in an undated photo.

Passengers disembark from a Boblo boat, circa 1970s.

Captain Bob-lo (Joe Short) was hired away from the Ringling Brothers circus to entertain the children on the Boblo cruises.

Boblo Zoo curator Steve Davis with Baruba, the white rhino, June 20, 1972. The zoo was one of the main attractions on the island amusement park.

The new roller coaster is under construction on Boblo Island in May 1973.

Thrill-seekers try Boblo's new roller coaster in May 1973.

Aerial view of a Boblo boat.

The Ste.Claire and the Columbia boats dock at Boblo Island.

Riders enjoy the Thunder Bolt roller coaster at Boblo Island in July 1975. The coaster was built of steel in 1973.

People take a break on Boblo Island in 1981.

George Francis and Lansy Chambles relax after lunch on Boblo Island on Aug. 27, 1981.

Two young girls enjoy one of the Boblo rides in 1981.

Children take a spin at the amusement park on Boblo Island in 1981.

American flags grace the Ste. Claire during a Girl Scout outing on July 4, 1981.

Passengers enjoy the view from a Boblo boat as it passes beneath the Ambassador Bridge.

The Boblo boat Columbia docks in this undated photo.

The Columbia at dock.

Passengers board the Columbia steamship on Boblo Island.

The Ste. Claire leaves Detroit with passengers bound for Boblo Island in 1959. The Boblo Island Amusement Park would close on Sept. 30, 1993, leaving only fond memories for generations of Detroiters.

The SS Ste. Claire sits docked in Ecorse on July 31, 2015. The boat may be scrapped if owner Ron Kattoo can't find a new home for it.

The SS Ste Claire is docked in Ecorse.

The upper decks of the boat show deterioration.

The Ste Claire's owners hope to salvage the famed boat.

The other Boblo boat, the SS Columbia, was awarded to a New York non-profit group, the S.S. Columbia Project, which intended to restore the boat and use it as an excursion vessel on the Hudson River. It's seen undergoing restoration in Toledo in 2015.

A workman washes the hull of the SS Columbia in 2015.

The SS Columbia in Toledo.

The SS Columbia sits in dry dock in Toledo. The boat is ultimately bound for the Hudson River in New York to carry passengers several years from now.

The wheelhouse of the Columbia.

The Columbia is lit up in dry dock in Toledo.

In 2015, the S.S. Columbia was towed from Toledo to Buffalo. It traveled over 250 nautical miles, being tugged across across three rivers Ð Detroit, Maumee, and Buffalo -- plus Lake Erie.

Columbia has undergone a $1.6 million hull restoration.