"melrose" collided with the southern pacific ferry "bay city" in a patch of dense fog on 26 january 1913. both ferries continued in service after repairs. two "melrose" deckhands were killed while attempting to rescue a man overboard on 9 july 1917 when the lifeboat they had launched to recover the passenger was drawn into the maneuvering ferry's paddle wheel. "melrose" narrowly avoided collision with the freighter "k.j.luckenback" in fog on 4 february 1922. "melrose" ran aground while maneuvering to avoid collision, and required the assistance of tugs to be refloated. in july 1926, "melrose" suffered a mid-bay mechanical breakdown requiring assistance of tugs. the rescue tug accidentally rammed "melrose" while passing a tow line. "melrose" started flooding and was grounded on a mud bar to prevent sinking until repairs could be made.