A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships came into practical usage during the early 1800s; however, there were exceptions that came before. Steamships usually use the prefix designations of "PS" for paddle steamer or "SS" for screw steamer. As paddle steamers became less common, "SS" is assumed by many to stand for "steamship". Ships powered by internal combustion engines use a prefix such as "MV" for motor vessel, so it is not correct to use "SS" for most modern vessels.
The MV Cartela is an excursion vessel operating on the Derwent River in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. She is now Australia's oldest continuously-licensed passenger vessel, although there are several older vessels still in service that have been restored after lengthy periods in dereliction.
A & J Inglis, Ltd, was a shipbuilding firm founded by Anthony Inglis and his brother John, engineers and shipbuilders in Glasgow, Scotland in 1862. The firm built over 500 ships in a period of just over 100 years. Their Pointhouse Shipyard was at the confluence of the rivers Clyde and Kelvin. They constructed a wide range of ships, including Clyde steamers, paddle steamers and small ocean liners. In wartime, they built small warships, and in the period after World War II, they built a number of whalers.
The Grand Trunk steamship Prince Rupert and her sister ship SS Prince George served the coast of British Columbia and Alaska. Prince Rupert had a 45-year career serving northern ports from Vancouver, British Columbia, from 1910 to 1955. The ship was considered "unlucky" and suffered several incidents during her career, including two significant ones that left large portions of the vessel underwater. The ship was broken up in 1956.
The steamship Sechelt operated from 1893 to 1911 on Lake Washington, Puget Sound and the Strait of Georgia. For most of her career, she was called Hattie Hansen. She became well known following her unexplained sinking with no survivors near Race Rocks Lighthouse in 1911.
Asbury Park was a high-speed coastal steamer built in Philadelphia, and intended to transport well-to-do persons from New York to summer homes on the New Jersey shore. This vessel was sold to West Coast interests in 1918, and later converted to an automobile ferry, serving on various routes San Francisco Bay, Puget Sound and British Columbia. This vessel was known by a number of other names, including City of Sacramento, Kahloke, Langdale Queen, and Lady Grace.
The Union Steamship Company of British Columbia was a pioneer firm on coastal British Columbia. It was founded in November 1889 by John Darling, a director of the Union Steamship Company of New Zealand, and nine local businessmen. The company began by offering local service on Burrard Inlet near Vancouver and later expanded to servicing the entire British Columbia coast.
For more than 35 years, from 1923 to 1958, the Union steamship Cardena sailed the British Columbia Coast, carrying passengers, groceries, dry goods, industrial cargo, mail and sundry other supplies to the 200 or so mining, logging and fishing communities that once dotted the province's coastline during the early years of the 20th century. On her return voyage, at the peak of the summer fishing season, Cardena routinely carried thousands of cases of canned salmon to the railheads at Prince Rupert and Vancouver for shipment across Canada and around the world. And so it went for the better part of half a century; a regular and reliable marine service that made Cardena a coastal institution, remembered with affection and regard by the countless men, women and children who inhabited those tiny outports in a bygone era.
The MV Tenaka is a ferry previously owned by BC Ferries. She was built for BC's Ministry of Transportation and Highways in 1964 in Victoria, British Columbia by the Victoria Machinery Depot. Originally named the Comox Queen, she was renamed Tenaka in 1977 and became part of BC Ferries' fleet in 1985 when the Ministry of Transportation's saltwater ferries and routes were transferred to BC Ferries. As of April 2016, the Tenaka was sold to Lady Rose Marine Services, a tourism company operating out of Port Alberni, British Columbia.
Atlanta was a steamboat built in 1908 at Houghton, Washington which served on Lake Washington and Puget Sound until 1938, when it was converted into a diesel-powered houseboat.
Capilano was a steamship built in 1920 in British Columbia, which served until 1949.
Lady Alexandra was a steamship built in 1924 in Montrose, Scotland which served in British Columbia from 1924 to 1952, mostly on Howe Sound.
Cheslakee was a steamship that operated from 1910 to 1913 under the ownership of the Union Steamship Company of British Columbia. In 1913, the ship sank, killing seven people. This was the only accident involving a passenger fatality in the 70-year history (1889-1959) of the Union Steamship Company. Following the sinking Cheslakee was raised, reconstructed, and launched again under a different name.
Cowichan was a steamship which was operated in British Columbia under the ownership of the Union Steamship Company. Cowichan sank in 1925 following a collision with another ship.
Cheakamus was a steamship built in 1913 in North Vancouver, British Columbia. This ship was originally built as the Cheslakee in Scotland. After Cheslakee capsized in 1913, the hulk was raised, lengthened, and placed back into service as Cheakamus.
Camosun was a steamship built in 1904 in Paisley, Scotland which served in British Columbia.
Lady Cynthia was a steel-hulled passenger ship converted from a minesweeper,, which served in the coastal waters of British Columbia from 1925 to 1957. Lady Cynthia was a sistership to Lady Cecilia, also a converted minesweeper. The ship was generally referred to as the Cynthia while in service.
Chasina was an iron-hulled, steam-powered ship, originally built as a steam yacht, but later converted to a passenger-freighter vessel that served in coastal British Columbia and other areas during the early decades of the 1900s under the ownership several different companies. The ship disappeared in 1931 after leaving Hong Kong.
The lake freighter MV Saginaw was launched as John J. Boland in 1953, the third vessel to bear that name. John J. Boland was owned and operated by the American Steamship Company and constructed by Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company at Manitowoc, Wisconsin. In 1999, the ship was sold to Lower Lakes Towing and renamed Saginaw. The ship is currently in service.
CNAV Laymore was an auxiliary vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Forces during World War II and the Cold War, converted to an oceanographic research vessel in 1966. The vessel was commissioned in 1945 as HMCS Laymore and served on the east coast of Canada. In 1946, the vessel was paid off and redesignated an naval auxiliary, given the prefix "CNAV" and transferred to the west coast. Laymore was taken out of service in 1977 and sold to private interests. Renamed Chilcotin Princess, the ship was used as a small coastal cargo vessel servicing smaller ports along the British Columbia Coast. In 1998, Chilcotin Princess was sold for use as a helicopter pad by the logging industry in British Columbia. The vessel was then brought to Namu, British Columbia, where Chilcotin Princess was left unattended.
