Reinvesting his profits brought by the Whitehalls, Crowley soon bought several gas-powered launches which were bigger, faster and more efficient than those upon which he had previously relied. This new company was incorporated in 1906, and was to be called the Crowley Launch and Tugboat Company. During the 1906 earthquake the fleet transported some of the coin and dollar deposits for the Bank of Italy (now the Bank of America) vault from the burning City of San Francisco in milk cans to the Berkeley Pier. There was just one escort as the Bank did not want to call attention to all this cash. Needless to say, we had no problems and customer expectations were exceeded! However, in the aftermath of the 1906 earthquake, many ferry services halted their operations. Crowley’s operations not only continued, but in fact increased, as his boats continually crossed the bay carrying people and their belongings from the battered streets of San Francisco. One of his launches actually anchored in the middle of the Bay, full of securities from several damaged banks. Tom Crowley, through these times, continued the expansion of his business. With his purchase of the Piper-Aden company he now controlled a fleet of scow-schooners, boats made specifically for the trafficking of materials such as grain, lumber and sand. Simultaneously, he entered into the tugboat business, competing with much larger companies such as Shipowners and Merchants Tugboat Company.