SS Naramata

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Naramata
Sicamous (sternwheeler) at Penticton BC with tug, c1920.jpg
SS Naramata and SS Sicamous at Penticton, 1920
History
Flag of British Columbia.svg Canada
Namesake Naramata
Owner
  • Canadian Pacific Railway (1914–c.1967)
  • Kettle Valley Railway Heritage Society (1991–2001)
  • S.S. Sicamous Restoration Society (2001–) [1]
Builder Western Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company [1]
CostCA$43,000 [1]
Completed20 April 1914 [1]
Out of serviceAugust 1967 [1]
Status Museum ship
General characteristics
Tonnage149.94  GT (73.67 registered) [1]
Length98 ft (30 m) LOA (89.8 ft (27.4 m) registered) [1]
Beam
  • 19.5 ft (5.9 m)
  • 43 ft (13 m) guards [1]
Height53 ft (16 m) [1]
Draught5.5 ft (1.7 m) [1]
Depth8 ft (2.4 m) [1]
Installed power
  • 10.5 ft × 9.5 ft (3.2 m × 2.9 m) Scotch Marine Boiler
  • Fore-and-aft, compound jet-condensing
  • 12 in × 18 in (30 cm × 46 cm) and 26 in × 18 in (66 cm × 46 cm) [1]
Propulsion
  • 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) four-blade screw
  • 150 ihp (110 kW) (27.3 hp (20.4 kW) nominal)
Speed
  • 12 mph (19 km/h)
  • 7 mph (11 km/h) towing [1]

SS Naramata is a steam tug commissioned by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) company. She pushed barges and broke ice on Okanagan Lake from 1914 to 1967. After over 50 years of service, the boat was eventually retired and left to rest in Penticton beside her sister ship, SS Sicamous. In 2001, she was purchased by the S.S. Sicamous Restoration Society and is currently undergoing extensive renovations. [2] Naramata is the only interior steam tug to be preserved in the province of British Columbia, Canada. [1]

Contents

Manufacture

Built for CPR, the hull, engine, boiler, and steel fittings of Naramata were pre-manufactured in Port Arthur, Ontario (now Thunder Bay) by Western Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company, with final assembly taking place in Okanagan Landing. [3] Construction began in September 1913 and was completed by the 20th of April in 1914. Upon completion, the total cost was CA$43,000 [1] and she was named after the village of Naramata, a town which at that time was responsible for producing a large portion of the valley's fruit supply. [4]

Crew

The crew aboard Naramata consisted of 11-13 men: [1] a captain or first officer, a pilot, two deckhands, a chief engineer, a second engineer, two firemen, one bargeman, and a cook who also served as a steward. [5] The ship was the first on Okanagan Lake to have a flushing toilet and was equipped with a functioning shower. Due to the dirty nature of the job, crew members were required to shower at least once a week. Often, it was a joke that the crew members were considered to be some of the "cleanest and dirtiest" on the lake.

The role of SS Naramata

Naramata would occasionally carry passengers (maximum 22) up or down Okanagan Lake, but she was mainly employed as a tugboat for the Canadian Pacific Railway. [1] CPR tugboats not only pushed and pulled barges filled with valuable goods, but in the winter months they would work as icebreakers, clearing the way for other larger and often wooden-hulled passenger ships. Naramata would often run ahead of Sicamous with crew members leaving a cardboard trail as a way to mark the clear path. More commonly, however, was the barge service. CPR tugboats could push up to two barges at once, and with barges capable of holding up to ten railcars at one time this was no small feat. When transporting two barges, Naramata would be wedged between them from astern, resulting in a "V"-shape that allowed for easy maneuvering. Alternately, barges could also be pulled from behind the tugs. [6]

Retirement

Naramata was retired in August 1967. After her retirement, she was kept at Okanagan Landing and passed through a variety of owners. [7]

Restoration

In 1991, Naramata was sold to the Kettle Valley Railway Heritage Society and the City of Penticton. On October first of that same year, she was moved to Penticton where she remained afloat beside Sicamous until 1993. [8] Upon discovering that the hull had begun to corrode, she was immediately beached in order to prevent sinking. [9] As of 2014 she is sitting in a pool of water with hopes to beach her permanently next to Sicamous.

In 2001, Naramata was purchased by the S.S. Sicamous Restoration Society, [2] and by 2003 the Society had begun to clean and repaired the damaged ship. This included the removal of three tons of coal and asbestos, general carpentry and safety repairs, and the installation of a steel staircase to allow for easier public access. In 2004 a CA$90,000 grant was awarded to the Society by the Western Economic Diversification Fund, a federal government program. This permitted further restoration of the ship and she received a deep cleaning and a fresh coat of paint. This was followed by the restoration of the pilothouse, some crew cabins, the replacement of numerous windows and the implementation of a security system.

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<i>Sicamous</i> (sternwheeler) Steamship in British Columbia

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Okanagan Landing was an unincorporated settlement and steamboat port at the north end of Okanagan Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia. Located southwest of the city of Vernon, it was the terminus station for the Shuswap and Okanagan Railway and served as the port and shipyard for steamboats operating to the south, as well as a transfer barge slip.

SS <i>Okanagan</i>

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SS <i>York</i>

SS York was a small steamer that was used to haul freight on Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake. York was built in 1902 by Bertram Iron Works of Toronto and assembled at Okanagan Landing. She was pre-fabricated with a steel hull and was twin-screw-driven. She was a small vessel in comparison to the many other ships on the lake; York was only 88 by 16 feet. York was capable of moving 134 tons in freight and could carry up to 90 passengers.

SS <i>Aberdeen</i>

SS Aberdeen was a steamship commissioned by Canadian Pacific Railway company. It was the first CPR steamship on Okanagan Lake and carried passengers and cargo from Okanagan Landing to Penticton from 1893 to 1919. Aberdeen connected communities along Okanagan Lake for the first time, creating a new era in the Okanagan Valley and greatly aiding the economy and settlement of the interior of British Columbia.

<i>Canadian National Tug no. 6</i>

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MV Okanagan was a tugboat that operated on Okanagan Lake, Penticton, British Columbia, from 1947 to 1972. It was the largest and last Canadian Pacific-operated tugboat on Okanagan Lake and its retirement marked the end of Canadian Pacific’s service on B.C.’s inland lakes and rivers, as well as 80 years of service on Okanagan Lake. During service, the Okanagan pushed railway barges up and down the lake and broke ice during winter.

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SS <i>Kelowna</i>

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<i>Kuskanook</i>

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Turner 1995, p. 33.
  2. 1 2 Hobson & Associates (2005). "Penticton Heritage Strategy" (PDF): 18.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ↑ Turner 2007, p. 165.
  4. ↑ Turner 1995, p. 28.
  5. ↑ Turner 1995, p. 30.
  6. ↑ Turner 1995, p. 60.
  7. ↑ Turner 1995, p. 63.
  8. ↑ Turner 1995, p. 68.
  9. ↑ Turner 2007, p. 279.

Bibliography

49°30′08″N119°36′41″W / 49.502159°N 119.611488°W / 49.502159; -119.611488

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