Sternwheelers in BC

Asquith · Jul 8, 2013

1

This is the SS Moyie, preserved in the friendly little town of Kaslo on Lake Kootenay, British Columbia, on where it went about its business from 1898 to 1957.

2
Port cylinder

3
'Pitman' (connecting rod)

4
Starboard side

The machinery is very simple. Simple expansion, non-condensing, two cylinder engine.

The piston valves are worked by Stephensons (or similar) link motion. A third eccentric works additional piston valves on top of the main ones, presumably to vary the cut-off. I failed to note how the actual cut-off alteration was made, although it looks as though the valves' operating lever would have to be manually repositioned on the vertical bar in the middle of photo #5 (to follow). Wrong! See post #3.

Asquith · Jul 8, 2013

5

6

7

Technical Spec:-
http://www.klhs.bc.ca/specs.htm

More to follow.

Asquith · Jul 9, 2013

In order to alter stroke of the cut-off valves, the end of the rod is moved up or down the bright, slightly curved bar seen in photo #5. This movement is effected by a rod connected to the valve operating rod. Not visible in photos, but it comes up from the lower deck, being operated by one of these levers:-

8

9

The other lever operates the reversing gear.

The reversing lever would need to be adequately counterweighted to favour the engineer's efforts over the engine's when manoeuvering in a confined space!

10
Steam throttle valve.

Asquith · Jul 9, 2013

12

13

14

Locomotive-type boiler's smoke box. The non-condensing engine's exhaust goes up the stack via a blast pipe to create the furnace draft, and, no doubt, make a nice chuffing noise.

15

Moving to the stern, this shows the three eccentrics for the starboard engine, and, to their right, the paddle wheel shaft’s bearing. The beam supporting the bearing is braced by a wooden strut and a tensioned steel or iron rod.

I was surprised to see that the paddle wheel had fixed (non-feathering) paddles, and realised that such delicacies might not be suited to stray logs and thick ice.

Asquith · Jul 9, 2013

16
Four rudders.

17
The two brass handles work a bell and a gong at the engineer’s workplace.

18
What are the trumpets for? So the bridge can hear that the bells have sounded below?
There are separate speaking tubes.

19
Minimalist heating on the bridge

Asquith · Jul 9, 2013

The Instrumentation

20

The engineer’s pressure gauges. Two presumably aren’t original, reading only to 100 psi (boiler pressure was 160 psi). Top gauge was made by US Gauge Co., NY, with a very elaborate finger. Left gauge made by Budenberg, Manchester, UK. Bottom, don’t know the maker, but it does bear the name of the builder of the engines, The Bertam Engine Works Co Ltd, Toronto. RH gauge shows the pressure on the boiler side of the throttle valve, made by James Morrison Brass Mfg Co of Toronto. The ship was made by Bertram's, and sent as a kit by rail to the lake, and assembled at Nelson.

21

22
The bridge has this barometer, and an overview of the boiler pressure on a gauge near the whistle.

Billyum · Jul 9, 2013

Looks to be in very good condition, where has it been stored for over 50 years ? Thank you for the excellent photo's Asquith.

Asquith · Jul 10, 2013

Billyum,

I don’t know the story of the boat’s preservation, although I have no excuse (other than pressure of time), as there is an excellent museum with numerous photos and descriptions of the history of the vessel and its work.

The quality of the restoration is superb, as these photos might indicate…..

23

24

25

26

27

Al Vanley · Jul 10, 2013

Asquith, thanks for posting this thread and the excellent photos.

The Canadian Pacific Railway operated quite fleet of steam paddlewheelers and screw tugs on the inland waters of British Columbia; the book,
Sternwheelers and Steam Tugs, by Robert D. Turner, Sono Nis Press, 1984, is an excellent resource for anybody interested in the subject.

Billyum, the Moyie was retired by the CPR after her last run on Kootenai Lake April 27, 1957 and sold to the Town of Kaslo on May 1, 1957 for one dollar, where she was preserved by volunteers of the Kootenai Lakes Historical Society. In 1982 she was declared a National Historic Site by Parks Canada.

Another CPR sternwheeler, the SS Sicamous has been preserved at Penticton, BC.

Asquith, I hope your trip to BC is wonderful - if you get to Vancouver Island and have time, the Provincial Logging Museum at Duncan and the McLean Mill (steam saw mill) at Port Alberni are worth a visit.

Al

Asquith · Jul 10, 2013

Al - Thanks.

We are back in the UK now, where the weather is the same as when we left Vancouver Island last week - 30C and cloudless - having visited both the logging museum and McLean Mill. We also had a look over SS Sicamous, and will post pictures later. I mention the weather, because traditionally Mrs Asquith find that our travels end droughts wherever we go. So, apologies and sympathy to the people of Calgary, Canmore, and High River. The floods did, however, have a silver lining for me, viz, finding SS Moyie and a nearby mining ghost town on our modified route.

Asquith · Jul 10, 2013

28

29

30

31

The ship’s lighting was supplied by a DC generator driven by an 'Ideal' high speed steam engine made by The Goldie & McCullough Co Ltd., Galt, Ontario. An F M Rites governor apparently controls the stroke of the piston valve. I was surprised to see a valve on the steam supply pipe, which I took to be a pressure reducer (made by Mason). Perhaps the engine wasn’t rated for the boiler pressure of 160 psi?

Nearby was a small slate switchboard made by T P Benton & Son of La Crosse, Wi. If I remember rightly, the ship’s large headlamp was made by the same firm.

Al Vanley · Jul 11, 2013

Here's a link to an excellent web site with film footage and stories about working on the SS Moyie and some of the other Kootenai Lakes sternwheelers:

Working on the SS Moyie - Stories | Sternwheelers of Kootenay Lake

Asquith · Jul 11, 2013

Al - Thanks for the link.

As we were approaching Kaslo, we spotted this strange house facing the lake. All credit to Mrs Asquith for her sharpshooting while on the move (especially given the g-force under which she was working as I braked

). I’d never seen a sternwheeler in the flesh, so wasn’t sure whether it was genuinely boaty or a mock-up. If genuine, I reckoned the owners must have heck of a basement.

Turns out that the upper works are genuine, from the SS Nasookin.

Here it is in its working days, being hauled ashore by horse gins.

paul39 · Jul 11, 2013

Asquith,

Thank you again for your wonderful photos and comments. Your posts are always interesting.

Paul

Jim Christie · Jul 11, 2013

Asquith ,
Tanks for posting .
Just a quick post for now to add some links I posted earlier about Goldie and McCulloch for those who might not have seen them.
Canadian machinery and metalworking
Iron and steel of Canada
Some more in post # 48 of this thread .
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...pair-steam-pumping-engines-205039/index3.html
Regards,
Jim

Asquith · Jul 12, 2013

Jim,

I noticed in your first link a reference to the Waterous Engine Works in Brantford, Ontario. The cargo space on SS Moyie includes a number of representative items of freight, including a very nicely made lightweight Waterous fire appliance, displaying fine forging and wheelwright's work.

Jim Christie · Jul 12, 2013

Asquith ,
Here Canadian machinery and metalworking is another link about Waterous that I posted a couple of years ago in post # 25 of this thread
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...finely-fashioned-fire-pump-227425/index2.html
Regards,
Jim

Jim Christie · Jul 12, 2013

Asquith ,
Here are some more links I found about James Morrison Brass Works
james morrison brass : Toronto Public Library

Illustrated catalogue and price list of steam gauges, engineers', plumbers', steam fitters' and gas-fitters' brass goods, electric fittings, iron pipe, malleable and cast iron fittings, plumbers' earthenware, copper and cast iron goods, tools for eng

Industrial exhibition 1887 price list, James Morrison Brass Works, Toronto, Ont. [microform] : James Morrison Brass Works : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive
and Bertram Engine Works .
Bertram Engine : Toronto Public Library

The Bertram Engine Works: 1892-1905

Biography – BERTRAM, GEORGE HOPE – Volume XII (1891-1900) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography

Redfern Construction, John Doty & Sons, Bertram Engineering Works, Canadian Shipbuilding, Toronto Shipyards, Thor Iron Works, Dominion Shipbuilding & Repair, Dufferin Shipbuilding, Toronto Shipbuilding

Internet Archive Search: subject:"Bertram Engine Works Company (Toronto, Ont.)"

Regards,
Jim

Ries · Jul 12, 2013

Just over the border from BC, we have the W.T. Preston in Anacortes-
W.T. Preston Snagboat

A wooden hulled steam powered sternwheeler from 1929.

unlike the Moyie, it was a working boat- a snagboat, which trolled Puget Sound for floating logs. There was so much logging all around Puget Sound, with the water being used as the principal method of floating the logs to the mills, that the navigable waterways were always full of floating logs, which, needless to say, were dangerous to navigation.

WT Preston - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Asquith · Jul 13, 2013

Ries,

Thanks. Turns out I must have been within about 30 miles of your home town a couple of weeks ago.

You say of the W T Preston, unlike the Moyie, it was a working boat. Well, Moyie was very much a working boat. As well as taking passengers (including some very well-heeled ones), it carried freight and pushed barges, and occasionally served as a stationary boiler.

Regarding dealing with floating logs, I came across these boom boats at surely the toughest tiny boats ever made. They’re at the BC Forestry Discovery Centre at Duncan, Vancouver Island, of which more later.

Sternwheelers in BC

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Titanium

Titanium

Diamond

Titanium

Titanium

Diamond

Diamond

Similar threads