Here are the names of the NYC ferries, as decided by second graders

Between 2017 and 2019, classrooms across the five New York boroughs took part in a citywide competition to name NYC ferries.

The results were funny, heartfelt, and surprisingly poetic.

Turning a transport project into one of NYC’s most wholesome civic moments.

From ‘Lunchbox’ to ‘McShiny’, here are some of the best names to ever hit the harbor.

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NYC ferries: City Fishy

A fan-favorite and for good reason.

Online commenters still chant ‘City Fishy supremacy!’ years later.

Playful, proud, and perfectly at home in the harbor.

Cyclone Shark

Coney Island energy, bottled.

Students combined their two local icons – the Cyclone roller coaster and the aquarium’s shark exhibit.

It’s chaotic, nostalgic, and totally fitting for the neighborhood that never met a thrill ride it didn’t love.

Curiosity

From Red Hook, a name about wonder.

The students said curiosity drives learning and built maritime culture in the first place.

They wanted their ferry to carry that same spirit across the water.

Dream Boat

Named by a Staten Island class who saw the ferry as a space between reality and possibility.

They pictured commuters using their rides to dream about what’s next – a better job, a new start, or just a better day.

Ferry Godmother

A Brooklyn pun-turned-perfect metaphor.

Kids compared the ferry to Cinderella’s magical carriage.

A way to new places, new experiences, and a little bit of everyday magic.

Forget Me Knot

From Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Students wanted a name that reflected both their maritime roots and their tightly knit, multicultural community.

It’s equal parts wordplay and warmth.

A knot that ties the city together.

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Friendship Express

Straight from the first round of naming in 2017, this one captures everything good about the project.

It’s fast, fun, and powered by optimism.

Basically, the city’s social life in boat form.

Koalafied Cruiser

Brooklyn again – this time from a class whose school mascot is a koala.

They named their boat after the P.A.W.S. values they live by: Pride, Attitude, Wise choices, and Safety.

Adorable civic virtue, now on the water.

Lunchbox

A Bay Ridge gem, ‘Lunchbox’ is what happens when second graders draw inspiration from what’s around them.

The simplicity and general hilarity of this name have made it another crowd fave amongst New Yorkers.

NYC ferries: McShiny

One of the original 2017 winners.

No one’s quite sure what inspired it, but it’s the kind of name only a kid could dream up.

And that’s exactly what makes it perfect.

Melting Pot

Greenpoint’s tribute to New York itself.

The students saw the ferry as a modern Ellis Island.

A place that carries people, cultures, and stories across the same waters their ancestors once crossed.

Purpose

From Brooklyn, chosen by a class convinced that ‘everyone has a purpose, even ferries.’

Their essay said the name should remind riders that getting where you’re going matters more than rushing to get there.

River Sprinter

Fast, practical, and unapologetically New York.

Brooklyn kids picked this one because their city doesn’t wait.

And neither should its boats.

NYC Ferries: Signs to Liberty

‘Signs to Liberty’ was created by students from a Lower East Side school for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

They wanted to honor American Sign Language and freedom.

And the fact that their ferry can see the Statue of Liberty from its route sealed the deal.

Sunset Crossing

From a class near Brooklyn’s waterfront.

They said the name should make people picture the city glowing in the last light of day.

Tooth Ferry

The ultimate dad joke-turned-masterpiece.

A Sunset Park class thought the Tooth Fairy deserved her own boat, so they gave her one.

NYC Ferries: White Sands

Coney Island students discovered their neighborhood once had a 1920s beach community called White Sands.

They loved its nostalgia and how it connected their ferry back to the sand beneath their feet.

Waves of Wonder

A second grader’s dream in four words.

Simple, wide-eyed, and everything this project was about – curiosity, community, and joy in motion.

There’s something weirdly perfect about a city this serious being represented by ferries called ‘Tooth Ferry’ and ‘City Fishy’.

They make the commute feel a little lighter, a little less adult – public transport with personality, civic pride with a sense of humor.

Which one’s your favorite? We can’t get over ‘Lunchbox’.

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