The Arness Terminal/OSK Dock

In 1961, Jim Arness conceived the idea of building a saltwater terminal to support supply barges in order to allow the Kenai area to receive goods without having to truck them overland from Seward. Arness applied for a permit with the Department of the Army in April 1961, then undertook the design and construction himself. He leased waterfront land from the State of Alaska on Nikiski Bay. With a pickup truck, bulldozer, and some help from local residents (including Richard McGahan, Dale McGahan, Jack McGahan, Norm McGahan, Alec Wik, Leo Wessenan, Jim Goff, Jerry Moore, Isam Hilleary, and Alfred Wik), Arness purchased three former Liberty ships and beached them, then filled the hulls with rocks and backfilled gravel to create a dock with one side in deep water.  The dock opened in June 1961. A September 29, 1961 article in the Kenai Peninsula Cheechako News  states that Standard Oil was planning to dock a barge with five homes destined for the Swanson River Oilfield at the Arness Terminal that week. 

Liberty ships are a class of transport vessel built in the US during WWII. The design was adapted for its simple, low-cost construction. These ships were mass-produced at an unprecedented rate; 18 US shipyards built 2,710 of them between 1941 and 1945. After the war, most of the surviving Liberty ships were sold and repurposed. Today only a handful survive.  The three ships that were purchased and beached by Jim Arness for the dock were the SS Edward A. Filene, SS. Howell Cobb, and SS Harold L. Winslow. The names of two ships, the SS Edward A. Filene and SS Howell Cobb, were still visible at one time; the SS Harold L. Winslow is buried in gravel. These Liberty ships form the basic structure of the Arness Dock, which was initially called Arness Terminal, and the center is backfilled with gravel.   

From Karen McGahan: “Richard McGahan ran the cat, working for Jim Arness, and pushed the first road to the beach for Arness Dock.” This road was eventually paved, and it is now the route to the Nikiski Middle-High School, as well as to the dock and heliport. 

Thanks to Jim Arness’ vision and determination, the completion of the dock coincided with escalation of drilling in Cook Inlet off the coast of Nikiski. His saltwater terminal became essential to the building and operating of the Swanson River Oilfield and, later, the offshore oil platforms, as the point from which their supplies and personnel were delivered. 

The dock's lease  for the dock and surrounding land has changed hands several times through the years. Jim Arness assigned the lease to Arness Terminal, Inc. in 1967. In 1972 the lease was assigned to Foss Tug & Launch, Inc. and then to Jesse S. Wade in 1977. Finally, in 1986, the lease was assigned to Offshore Systems - Kenai, and the terminal became known as the OSK Dock. 

In October 2019, heavy seas caused a 50-foot section along the northeast corner of the dock to collapse. The photo on the right was taken just after the repairs were made. Repairs can be seen in the upper right sea-facing front of the dock, next to the jack-up rig Randolph Yost, which was moored next to the dock from March 2016 to October 2021.  As of 2022, tidal action continues to undermine the OSK Dock; all pollutants have been moved and portions of the dock were closed by the Coast Guard. The structure may be failing and needed repairs will be extensive. The Cook Inlet platforms have begun using an alternate dock for the time being. After 60 years of service, the future of the OSK Dock is uncertain.