VOLUSIA Province, Fla. – A memorable towing boat worked in DeLand in 1944 has made its last journey once more into Volusia Province in the wake of being in Europe for a long time.
The non-profit DeLand Historic Trust Inc.’s president, Dan Friend, has made it his mission to bring the 140-ton boat that was likely used in Normandy during World War II back to Deland.
“We found Tiger with its unique The Second Great War motor still set up, the first superstructure set up,” Companion said.
Tiger finally made its way back to the United States in 2022 thanks to an anonymous donation that paid for its transportation to Jacksonville. However, it had a minor setback earlier this year when it got stuck in the mud in Astor.
Friend stated, “We knew it would come up, and it did, and we are bringing it home to get it in a safe location before we have another hurricane like Ian.”
Indeed, even hours before the towing boat advanced back to DeLand, individuals set up camp along the St. Johns Waterway fully expecting seeing it.
Susie Peace stated, “We arrived around 7:15.” The tale is fantastic, and I’ve always been excited about it.
Craig Walker is a U.S. Naval force veteran. He and other members of his rotary club were making snacks for the crowd of people who came to see the tugboat up close and personal early on Sunday at Ed Stone Park along the St. Johns River.
“I’m eager to see it get down here, my father by marriage helped assemble the thing,” Walker said. ” It’s kind of cool to have it return to where it was built.
People in DeLand are working to preserve this boat because it really has a lot of history. The boat could even be used as a memorial, according to what I’ve been told.
Friend stated, “We’re going to have a monument dedicated to all of the builders and crews of every U.S. Army ST of World War II.”
