104-Year-Old SS KEEWATIN Departs Douglas
New owners, Skyline International Development Co., began the 550 mile move of the 350-foot SS KEEWATIN from Peterson’s Tower Marina at Douglas, Michigan to Port McNicoll, Ontario, Canada, the ship’s onetime home port. The City of Port McNicoll plans to renovate the 104-year-old steamship and feature her as part of a waterfront park.
“If I was younger, I wouldn’t be selling it,” said R.J. Peterson. He his wife, Dianne, a local marina-owning couple in Douglas, took out a personal loan to buy the vessel, saving her from scrap and restored KEEWATIN’s interiors, opening the ship to the public for paid tours way back in 1967.
“The KEEWATIN is a treasure that needs to be preserved,” said Peterson (who turns 85 this year), “Here, it’s just a local attraction I brought to town. In Ontario, it’s a Canadian steamship with national historic connections,” he added, noting the ship was part of the Canadian Pacific Railway’s rail-to-water transportation system of deluxe travel during the first half of the 20th century.
The SS KEEWATIN, the last Edwardian liner, has been a tourist attraction for the last 44-years at Douglas, Michigan on the east shore of the Kalamazoo River, a few miles from Lake Michigan.
The ship was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in Scotland and delivered to Owen Sound, Ontario in 1907. Wayne Brown informs MaritimeMatters that she ran between Owen Sound and Port Arthur/Fort William from 1908 until 1911. In 1912 the Canadian Pacific Railway moved their southern Great Lakes Terminal to the newly built company town of Port McNicoll.
The KEEWATIN then commenced running from Port McNicoll to the Canadian Lakehead for the next 54 years.
At 2:46 pm May 31, 2012 she was towed away from her berth and reached her first destination at the mouth of the Kalamazoo River at Lake Michigan. US Coast Guard regional office in Milwaukee granted permission at 1pm and the tow began at 2:46. Canons roared, cars blew their horns, and all boats in the marinas blew their sirens and rang bells and alarms. With the support of the Coast Guard, changes were made for the deep water tow: water-filled ballast bags were used to lower the bow and raise the stern, while doors and hatches were secured.
Arrival in Port McNicoll is expected June 23rd at 1:30 pm.
Special thanks to Eric Conroy, the S.S. KEEWATIN Marine Museum and Wayne Brown
http://drone-on.com/2012/05/31/we-are-on-the-way/
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Looks like she has a pronounced port list. Wonder if that was a result of the tow-ballasting mentioned in the article?
Fair winds and following seas, old girl. Good luck at the new home.
I was lucky enough to see this ship in Douglas last year, she’s still in extremely good condition and well worth visiting. I hope Port McNicholl proves to be a worthy home to this venerable ship.
The bright future of the S S Keewatin and the restoration of the S S Col. James M Shoonmaker in Toledo are the year’s brightest maritime preservation projects on the Great Lakes. Add to this the recent move in Toronto of the steam tug Ned Hanlan in Toronto and things seem to be looking up for maritime preservation in the Great Lakes.
—SWL
For more information on Great Lakes preservation projects, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_and_historic_ships_of_the_Great_Lakes
All my hopes for this great little ship–among the very last of her kind and a historic landmark for the United States and Canada. She will be missed on this side of the border but she is going to a very fitting place. 🙂 I hope to visit her there sometime.
What a true treasure a true miniture ocean liner.
As a young 10 year old gir,l I took the trip up the lakes from Port McNichol to Port Arthur/Fort William on the Keewatin’s sister ship, the SS Assiniboine in 1959 with my family. It was an unforgettable experience. Two years later in 1961,we went again on the SS Keewatin. My mother, father and we five sisters, all under the age of 12, dined in style in the fancy dining room and attended the evening activities where people performed and we all had a good old sing-a-long with songsheets of all the old favourites. These trips were a highlight of my youth.
A true Jewel Of the Great Lakes. I think its great that she is returning to her home back to Canada. Going back were her history began. She will be missed here in Douglas/Saugatuck. But I am thankful she did not fall to the same fate as the SS North American and the SS South American. I wish we could have a cruise ship back on the Great Lakes Again. I so miss the days of waiting for ships to arrive, and see all the people so excited to take a tour of their port of call and go sight seeing and enjoy the finding that special something, or treasure to take with them on their travels…the joys found in days gone bye, on the Great Lakes. You are missed.
My family and I visited the Keewatin in Michigan a few years ago and we were all so emotional to see her once again.My father worked on the Keewatin for over forty years and was the last Chief Steward before her career as a passenger ship ended. We along with many other PortMcNicoll families grew up with what I think is an amazing ship.I was very impressed how majestic the ship looked in Douglas/Saugatuck and how with great pride her history was presented to visitors. My father would have been speechless.We can’t wait to see her again.Thank you to those involved in bringing her back.
“104-Year SS KEEWATIN Departs Michigan | MaritimeMatters | Cruise ship news
and ocean liner history” was genuinely entertaining and enlightening!
In modern society that’s very difficult to carry out.
Thank you, Lea
Is it just me or the top photo seems to have smoke coming from her stack. Curious…
In the 1980s, we kept our sailboat at Tower Harbour Marina and the Keewatin was always a focal point. Our little yacht club would hold it’s annual dinners in the dining hall aboard. Everyone would dress up and RJ Petersen would wear navy whites for the occasion. Before dinner, it was fun to explore the ship and imagine what it was like to sail aboard her.