SS. Moyie, This is the oldest intact passenger paddlewheeler left. She sits in dry dock in Kaslo BC. Where she once plyed the waters of the Kootaney Lake for 59 years. operated by CP Rail. Have a look at this web site.
http://www.klhs.bc.ca/ Superintendent Duchesnay of the CPR had made a preliminary survey of the route in the fall of 1897 and had recommended a fleet of 12 sterwheelers be constructed for the river section. Hoping to grab a huge portian of the freight and passenger service, the CPR accepted his recommendation and awarded contracts for the steamers. Four were to be constructed at Port Blakely in Washington: five at False Creek in Vancouver, and the remaining three in Toronto. Except for the three in Toronto ,all were to be wooden - hulled.
The Betram Iron Works of toronto was awarded the contracts for the construction of the Moyie and Minto's hulls. By having the prefabricated components manufactured in Toronto and shipped by rail to the coast, the CPR hoped to speed construction and have the vesssels ready for the opening of summer traffic in 1898. although the bottoms were to be planked in wood, the steel sides and bows made them much stronger and less susceptible to damage from ice, features which contributed greatly to the longevity of each of these two sternwheelers. The upper works and cabins were to be constructed at the assembly yards on the BC coast.
The prefab components of the Minto and the Moyie, each in 1,000 pieces were shipped to the coast as planned. however before any assembly could be undertaken, prospects for the all Canadian route to the Klondike turned sour. Materials for the railway had been delivered and Mackenzie and Mann had surveyed the route, 12 miles of which had been graded. But the Canadian Senate could not stomach the 4,000,000 acre land grant demanded by the railroad builders, and refused to pass the appropriation. The CPR , meanwhile, in anticipation of the project proceeding, had heavily advertised the route and sold thousands of tickets. But when the unfortunate ticket holders arrived, there was no railway, only a rutted trail that even horses had trouble negotiating.
With the collapse of the Stikine Route, the CPR had to make alternate plans for its new vessels., only four of which actually saw limited service on the Stikine. The Moyie and Minto were diverted to the Kootenays. For this new service it was decided to lengthen the hulls each by 20 feet. Even with this extention , however ,the vessels were not large.
The Moyie's components arrived at Nelson late June 1898, where a crew of riviters began assembling the frames and steel plating.
This work was completed in about a month and on July 26 the riveters left Nelson for Nakusp to begin work on the Minto. Once the Moyie's hull had been assembeled, carpenters, pipe fitters, and painters took over. finally four months after its components had reached Nelson, the Moyie had been Completed at a cost of $41,275.00 Like her sister Ship Minto, she was 161 feet [excluding the paddlewheel] 30 feet wide and five feet deep. her engines, each with a single high-pressure cylinder 16 inches in diameter with a stroke of 72 inches, were capable of developing a total nominal horse power of 17.
Box like in appearance, the Moyie was licenced to carry 250 passengers with freight, 400 without. Minor differences made in each vessel resulted in the gross tonnage of the Moyie , being 835, six more than the Minto.
In its issue of October 8, the Sandon Mining Review gave a breif description of the Moyie:{The smoking room is 48 feet long,the dining room 27 1/2 feet ,and the ladies cabin 40 feet. There are six staterooms which are being fitted up in first class style. the bar is situated on the port side forwards, and on the same side are the toilet rooms and linen room. on the starboard side are the purser's office and room and the steward's room. on the upper deck are two rooms on each side of the officers and a large room for the waiters.}
After a successful trail run, the Moyie was brought back to Nelson where coinsiderable work remained to be done on her passenger accommodations.
By 1930, the CPR had substancially curtailed its passenger and railcar barge service on kootenay Lake. This marked the end of over 30 years of [main line serivice] between Nelson or proctor and Kootenay Landing. One by one the steamers and tugs in the fleet were scrapped or sold.
By 1935 , only the Moyie and Granthall remained. Sternwheelers Nelson, Kokanee, Internatinal, Kaslo, and Kuskanook became only memories. The Nasookin enjoyed a breif reprieve. Purchased bt the BC Government to be used as a car ferry in 1933 she served in that capacity until 1947.
The Moyie continued to enjoy a happy and close association with all the communities and settlements along the lake., especially the ones that were still isolated and not easily accessible by road. For those places, many with not even a wharf to land at, the pattern and timetable of life beat to the rhythm of the Moyie's paddlewheel. Her regular arrival was a time for all to meet and talk with old friends, greet someone returning home, bid someone farewell, or simply pick up your mail.
But by the early 1950's even the Moyie was beginning to show signs of her old age. Worst, her service record indicated that she was no longer paying her own way. Over the years rail traffic on the lake had dropped off noticeably, most of the cargo now being handeled by freight and bus lines. In addition people were preferring to take their cars, rather than take a ride on an old boat.
When her sister ship the Minto was retired in 1954, the Moyie remained the only active member of a once large fleet of sternwheelers. But it was clear that her time was also running out. The CPR, facing increasingly high maintenance costs and declining traffic, had no option but to retire its last sternwheeler. In March of 1957 They announced that the Moyie's last run would be made on April 27 1957, bringing and end to 59 years of service.
During her last 9 hour voyage, the Moyie called on 13 communities and everywhere the reception was warm and sad. Capt. G.A. West of Shutty Beach, boarded her carrying three dozen daffodils for the passengers as he and his wife had done for the past 38 years.,on their spring trip up the lake. Andrew Scott aged 89, who had been at her Nelson launching in 1898 was on board as were many other long time residents of the area. When she tied up to the wharf at Procter late in the afternoon, the end to CPR sternwheeler srevice had come.
Fortunatley, for posterity, the Moyie did not suffer the indignity of her sister the Minto, which in August of 1968 was towed to the centre of Upper Arrow Lake opposite Nakusp and set ablase. Three years prior to the Moyie's retirement, upon rummers that she was nearing the end of service, Jack Morris , president of the Kaslo Board of Trade, had written to G.A Phillips, the CPR Superintendent at Nelson, expressing the desire of Kaslo to purchase the Vessel and turn it into a museam.
On May 1 1957 the CPR announced that the Moyie had been sold to the town of Kaslo for $1.00 The Moyie was towed to Kaslo during high water and beached on the lake shore. To prepare a foundation, timbers from the high trestle bridge at Three Forks which had been abandoned by the CPR were purchased. These timbers were laid on the beach and the Moyie was skidded into its present position.
In 1978 the Moyie was declared a natinal historic site, by Parks Canada.
West Kootenay: The Pioneer Years By Garnet Basque'
copyright 1990
