Storyteller Brings Female Ferry Captain to Life

Anyone who rides a Washington State Ferry should take in a show by Whidbey Island storyteller Jill Johnson (pictured left), who portrays Berte Olson, the state's first female ferry boat captain in a one-woman show. Between 1920 and 1950, Olson ran two different ferryboat companies in Puget Sound. But Berte was also the oldest daughter of a large pioneer family, a wife, and a mother. Johnson has performed and given storytelling workshops in Washington, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and overseas. She was a National Storytelling Competition finalist. Her next performance of her one-woman show, "Little, But Oh My!", is Saturday, July 22 at Deception Pass State Park. Check the Maritime Heritage Network Calendar for details.