THE STERNWHEELER “NELSON,” AT NELSON, B. C.
It was fourteen years after the arrival of the Beaver before much effort was made at steam-boating in these waters. About that time several small steamers were built on the Columbia River. In 1852 the Hudson’s Bay Company had another vessel built at Blackwall: this was the Otter, a screw steamer of 220 tons, with a pair of condensing engines by Penn, of Greenwich, which took the first prize at the London Exhibition in 1851. The Otter left London in January 1853, and arrived at Victoria five months later. The year 1858 witnessed a boom in steam navigation, consequent upon the rush and wild excitement of gold-seekers to the Fraser River and Cariboo. “The Surprise first woke the echoes in the grand mountain gorges in the wild regions of Fort Hope with the shrill scream of the steam-whistle, and astonished the natives with her wondrous power in breasting successfully the fierce current of the now world-renowned Fraser. That wild and unearthly yell of the imprisoned steam escaping into the free air of heaven must have astonished the denizens of those mountain fastnesses and startled man and beast into the belief that some uncanny visitor, not of earth, had dropped in upon their solitude.” The Surprise was followed by a fleet of small steamboats built in the United States. Among those were the Ranger and Maria—mere steam launches of about 40 feet in length. The Maria was brought up from San Francisco in a barge. The first boat built in British Columbia was the Governor Douglas, a good-sized stern-wheeler which commenced to ply between Victoria and the Fraser River in 1859. Among the other notable boats were the Seabird and the Eliza Anderson. The former carried immense crowds, but drew too much water for the river trade. The latter was a side-wheeler, built in Portland, 140 feet long, and of registered tonnage, 279. On her arrival at Victoria in 1859 she commenced a career of money-making which has seldom been equalled. After these appeared the Umatilla, Enterprise and Colonel Moody, the last-named being the fastest yet built for this route. All the light-draught boats were then, as they are now, stern-wheelers. About this time another and larger vessel arrived from London, the Labouchere, a side-wheel steamer, of 680 tons register, 202 feet long, 28 feet beam, and 15 feet hold. She continued running up north until 1865, when she was granted a subsidy of $1,500 a trip to carry mails between Victoria and San Francisco, but was lost on her first voyage. In 1861 more steamboats were built than in any previous year. Nearly a dozen were added to those already plying on the rivers and lakes, and the subsequent progress in steam navigation was continuous. The entrance of mining prospectors into the Kootenay country in 1886 led to the necessity of increased transportation on the Columbia River, which has gone on increasing until now on that river and the Kootenay lakes there are some of the finest river steamers in the Dominion, fitted with every comfort and appliance that experience can suggest. The development of the coast wise trade has also led to the building of special steamers both in British Columbia and also in England. The coal mines at Nanaimo and the Comox district also find employment for a large quantity of steam tonnage.[66] The aggregate amount at the four ports of Victoria, Vancouver, Nanaimo, and Westminster for 1895 was: Arrivals, 1,496,409 tons; departures, 1,513,233 tons. There are at present registered in British Columbia 161 steamboats with a tonnage of 24,153.
Besides the inland steamers there are coasting lines from Victoria and Vancouver to Portland and San Francisco, and to Puget Sound and Alaska. There are also four regular lines of steamships to Japan and China, namely, the Canadian Pacific Steamship Company, with its beautiful fleet of “Empress” steamers; the Northern Pacific Steamship Company; the Oregon R. R. and Navigation Company, and the Nipon Yunen Kaisha of Japan. There is also the direct line of steamers to Australia elsewhere referred to. The number of vessels in the different lines is uncertain, as they are increased by chartered boats whenever there is much freight moving.
In Nova Scotia.[67]
The harbour of Halifax is one of the finest in the world. It is easy of access and open all the year round. It is nearly six hundred miles nearer to Liverpool than is New York, and has therefore many advantages to offer as a point of arrival and departure for ocean steamers. It is the centre of an extensive local and coasting trade, in which a large number of both steamers and sailing vessels are employed. The number of arrivals of sea-going vessels in 1895 was 978, with a gross tonnage of 627,572 tons; the number of arrivals of coasting vessels was 3,651, of which 496 were steamers, with a tonnage of 153,790 tons. The number of steamers registered in the port is 55, with a gross tonnage of 10,912 tons. The steam tonnage which entered the port in 1896 was 212,085; the clearances were 229,653 tons.
The first steamer to enter this renowned harbour was the Royal William (Captain John Jones, R. N.), from Quebec, August 24th, 1831, which arrived here on the morning of the 31st and was welcomed with great éclat. The trip was made in six days and a half, including two days’ detention at Miramichi. The cabin fare was £6 5s., including meals and berths. Having been built for this trade, the Royal William made a number of successful voyages between Quebec and Halifax, calling at intermediate ports previous to her historic voyage across the Atlantic, which was to proclaim her the pioneer of ocean steam navigation!
The Cunard Line commenced to call at Halifax fortnightly en route to Boston, in 1840. The Britannia was the first of that famous fleet to enter the harbour of Halifax. This arrangement did not last very long, however, for, on making New York their western terminus, the Cunarders gave “the finest harbour” the go-by, never to return except in cases of emergency. There are, however, some fifteen or sixteen lines of steamers plying regularly from Halifax to Britain, the United States, the West Indies, South America, Newfoundland, and Canadian ports. During the winter months the Beaver Line, carrying the Canadian mails, calls here weekly en route from St. John, N. B., to Liverpool. The Allan Line from Liverpool to Philadelphia, via Newfoundland, touches here once a fortnight going and coming. The Furness Line has excellent steamers sailing fortnightly from London to Newfoundland and Halifax. The Canada and Newfoundland Line also maintains a good service from Halifax to St. John’s, Liverpool and London; the Jones Line to Jamaica; the Pickford and Black Line to Bermuda and the West Indies; the Musgrave Line to Havana. The Red Cross Line from New York to Newfoundland calls here; besides, a number of coasting steamers to Cape Breton, Newfoundland, Yarmouth, Bridgewater, St. Pierre and other places call at Halifax, while the Canada Atlantic and Plant Line supplies a direct route to Boston and all points in the United States.