- [SS Columbia] I want to tell you a story about an island between Detroit and Canada known as Boblo.

(child growling) - The Boblo experience was the boat ride there.

- Getting on a boat, giving a man your little ticket and you on a boat, you having fun, you partying.

- [SS Columbia] My sister Claire and I would take families by the thousands for a summer of fun.

- There wasn't no white, no Black.

It was just all everybody together.

And that's what made it the Boblo Boat.

- [SS Columbia] Nothing lasts forever.

- I really wish we still had Boblo.

It gives Detroiters something to do.

- How can this be, how can we lose this?

One of these great historic institutions?

- There was a Supreme Court ruling about integration on the Boblo Boat that really did start to change history in America.

- You just can't get rid of this boat.

Like, this is a part of history.

(bright upbeat music) - Yeah!

(children giggling) - You know, so he comes home.

He's like, remember that Boblo Boat?

I just bought one.

I'm like, you bought what, you bought this?

I'm like, are you crazy?

- My whole goal of coming down here to this hospital was to get this boat done.

I've been here for 15 months, I haven't had a single day off.

- I worked in the concession stand right across from the DJ booth.

I've been building this and collecting it since 1989.

A lot of people think I'm crazy.

When you go on that ship, all your problems seem to go away, you know.

- She does talk to me from time to time, but I've never had the St. Claire talk to me, and I'm not sure I would want that.

- With ships, there's a lot of superstitions, bad omens.

- If we can't find a spot I may have no option except to scrap her.

- You have to look at the fact that he's a surgeon.

- Right?

- He may have inherited a God complex.

- Whoa.

- [SS Columbia] If this was your classic bedtime story, a wizard might arrive from some far away land and poof, the curse would be lifted.

(eerie music) - I don't see scrapping, I see an intervention.

- You are her hope for a tomorrow.

- [SS Columbia] But this isn't that kind of fairytale.

- One accident, one bad partner and Boblo paid the price.

- City after city after city lost their urban amusement parks.

- We need Detroit fixed first, before you can go fix a boat.

- I fell in love with that boat.

♪ We jump off the ferry and run to the merry-go-round ♪ ♪ On Boblo Isle ♪ ♪ Ferris wheels and popcorn meals ♪ ♪ Would give every kid a big smile ♪