Imagine yourselves as passengers boarding Keewatin in the early 1900’s, tickets in hand. You might first see Keewatin in Port McNicoll, a rural community on the shores of Georgian Bay, when you step down from the special “boat train” from Toronto, which has pulled right out onto the pier.

You would have entered here, the Passenger Lobby. Although a little smaller than the lobby of a grand hotel, it served much the same purpose: this was the nerve centre of service. Twenty-four hours a day, whatever your needs, questions, or problems, there were polite professionals here to help. Canadian Pacific was a global network of passenger and cargo railways, ocean and lake liners, and grand hotels like the Chateaus Frontenac and Laurier, The Royal York, and the Banff Springs. Keewatin was part of that grand legacy of service and elegance.

Keewatin was part of Canadian Pacific Railways system of railways, steamships, and hotels. But why would a railway company own a steamship? Quite simply travel by railroad was crucial, but Canada’s geography did not always cooperate. Long distance travel by horseback or carriage was slow and tedious. To avoid this and to provide a more pleasurable experience, CP simply “cut the corner” by running ships from the south end of Georgian Bay at Port McNicoll to the north shore of Lake Superior at Port Arthur, connecting with their own tracks headed west. The Upper Great Lakes Line began service in 1884 to great success. In 1907, CP commissioned two more ships: the SS Keewatin [kee-way-tin] and her identical sister ship the SS Assiniboia [uh'sinee'paaw]. These CP passenger “liners” were an integral part of the CP railway system, and therefore kept strict schedules to meet the train connections at both ends of their passage route. 

This lobby is the only part of this deck that was accessible to passengers. Behind, or aft, of here are the engine room and the quarters of the engine crew, and forward from here is the luggage and cargo deck.

This is the Purser’s office. The Purser was a ship’s officer. If it involved money, the Purser was in charge. He was ticket seller, business agent, cashier, banker, paymaster for the crew of 86, and keeper of valuables, including large amounts of cash, in the ship’s safe beneath his desk, which is right next to where he slept - unless there was an unoccupied Berthe he could use.

The Purser would regularly travel to Toronto to meet passengers travelling to Port McNicoll on the “boat train” to board Keewatin. On the train, the purser would make sure all tickets were in order, learn about special needs, put faces to names, and assign passengers to their cabins. The Purser and the Chief Steward would also have assigned your seating in the Dining Room for lunches and dinners, and in doing so, give you and your party a waiter who would serve you and see to your needs for the whole two and a half days of the voyage. If you were travelling alone, and not in one of the deluxe cabins, the Purser might also decide with whom you shared a cabin.

Keewatin and Assiniboia, destined for the upper Great Lakes, had to pass through locks coming up the St Lawrence River and on the 3rd Welland Canal. Those locks, however, were shorter than the ships themselves. 

The ships were sailed to near Montreal, where they were split into preplanned, watertight halves. You can see that here and this yellow line on the deck is where she was split.  These were towed up to Buffalo, where they were put back together. They even brought the rivets to do the job with them from Glasgow.

Keewatin initially operated with four boilers; as you can see, only two boilers remain today. When Keewatin was towed to Michigan for her repurposing as a museum ship in 1966, her two forward boilers were removed, and her aft boilers were cut in half. Keewatin’s boilers known as Scotch Marine and are technically a fire tube design. The fire and hot combustion gasses are contained within steel spaces and tubes that pass through the water in the boiler and the heat from the hot surfaces and tubes causes the water to boil and generate steam pressure. 

The firemen onboard Keewatin worked here, stoking coal to generate more heat and produce more steam. Two firemen out of the total of six would work a four-hour watch in the boiler room. The frequency the coal was stoked would depend on the amount of steam required by the Engine Room and the boilers would be stoked / fired approximately every 15 minutes when the main engine was operating. Approximately every 4 hours the ash was removed from the ash pit and deposited overboard – a very dirty practice!

In addition to the total of 6 firemen there were 3 water tenders with one working each of the 4-hour watch periods. The water tenders were senior to the firemen and responsible for maintaining the correct water level in each of the 4 boilers. If a boiler ran dry, it could literally begin to melt down or explode violently, hence the importance of the water tenders.

When steam pressure leaves a boiler through a pipe and enters a larger volume space such as an engine cylinder, it naturally expands in volume to fill the larger space and the expanding pressure exerts an internal force that forces the piston within the cylinder to move creating a mechanical force that can be developed into the engines rotative energy output. As the steam expands, its pressure is reduced and in order to extract all of the steams expansive energy it must be allowed to continue expanding in other progressively larger diameter cylinders until there is no pressure remaining. In order for the steam to provide a balanced mechanical energy output, the progressive expansion of the steam pressure within each cylinder upon their pistons must be reasonably equal.  

It is necessary that the diameter of each expansion stage cylinder provides a piston surface area that will allow the steam pressure force upon each piston to be reasonably equal for each progressively lower pressure.

The Engineer Officer controls the direction the engine will turn by adjusting this lever the Valve Link Lever. Turning the large steel wheel will also change the direction the engine will turn.  At full power the engine produces 3300 horsepower and operates at 120 RPM.  You may think that is not a lot of power but, if this engine was replaced by a diesel engine it would require over 5000 horsepower to equal the steam engines performance!

The Throttle Valve Wheel controls the throttle valve that regulates the steam flow from the boilers to the engine and causes the 4 pistons to stroke up and down. The pistons movement is transmitted to 4 connecting rods that are connected to and turns the crankshaft that is connected to the propeller shaft and the propeller.

These two machines are the main steam powered electric generators that provided all of Keewatin’s electric power. They are both identical and consist of a two-cylinder compound enclosed crank reciprocating steam engine that is shaft connected to this electric generator. So yes, there is more than one engine in the engine room!

Each generator operates at 500 RPM and can produce a direct current output of 30 kilowatts (KW) at 100 volts. Normally only one generator would be required to supply Keewatin’s total electrical load and the other generator remained on standby. The generators were controlled and the electricity distributed to the ship by this control panel.

The thrust bearing shaft consists of several collars that are these large rings.  The collars fit between these bearing thrust shoes and there is an adjustable free clearance between the collars side surfaces and the shoes. The bearing thrust shoes are fastened components securely bolted to the ships hull. The number of collars on a thrust bearing will depend on the maximum power of the main engine and the level of thrust than can be developed from the propeller. 

If the propeller is rotating to make the ship move ahead, the resulting thrust push will force the thrust bearing shaft forward and all of the collars will be forced against the ahead thrust shoes and the propeller thrust will be transferred from the shoes through the bearing housing into the hull and the ship will move ahead.

We have now entered the realm of passenger cabins on Keewatin. As they liked to say, there was only one class of passenger on Keewatin: first class. While there were deluxe cabins available, at an extra cost, the service and food were the same for everyone: first rate. Only the outboard cabins had portholes, but electric fans in every cabin helped circulate the air - and, I imagine, provided a little acoustic privacy, which was otherwise lacking.

1907 was the height of the Edwardian Era, named after the reign of King Edward the Seventh of England. It was an age of elegance – think the TV show ‘Downton Abby’]: big hats, beautiful dresses, top hats and tails. It was also the climax of the Industrial Revolution in Britain. Keewatin passengers would have expected nothing but the best.

Over her 57 years of service Keewatin never had a serious accident, but that was not just good luck. CP Ships stayed on top of evolving safety standards.

Many lessons were learned from the sinking of a very famous ship. Can you guess its name?” After the Titanic disaster Keewatin was fitted with enough lifeboats for everyone aboard, something the Titanic lacked. And after the SS Noronic, another Great Lakes passenger liner, burned in Toronto harbour with the loss of at least 148 lives, Keewatin was extensively overhauled with steel fire doors and a sprinkler system. She was also the very first ship on the Great Lakes to get radar, in 1946. Before that, the bridge was wide open to the weather to give unobstructed visibility. It was enclosed, not for the comfort of those standing watch, but to protect the new electronic gear

In 1965, after nearly sixty years of service, Keewatin was retired from Canadian Pacific’s fleet and the Upper Great Lakes Steamship Service ended. With the advent of commercial air travel, the opening of the St Lawrence Seaway to large ocean-going ships and concerns about safety in the wake of the SS Noronic fire in 1949, passenger Great Lakes liners such as Keewatin were no longer profitable to operate. From here, she was sold for scrap metal before being saved by the Petersons of Saugatuck, Michigan. At the Peterson’s marina, Keewatin remained open as a museum ship until 2011, and then she was repatriated to Port McNicoll and operated as a museum from 2012 to 2019. After several months of restoration at Hamilton, she arrived in Kingston October 2023, where we hope she will remain for generations to come. Of the roughly 3600 passenger steamship liners built during her era, Keewatin is the only one remaining in the world. We thank you for taking the time to appreciate a one-of-a-kind piece of maritime heritage.  

Here we have the Bell Hop station. The 9 Bell Hops were usually 15 or 16 years of age and were generally from the Port McNicoll area. They took turns waiting in these chairs during the ship’s journey and servicing the daily needs of the passengers until 11 p.m.

The Bell Hops were a lively, sometimes mischievous bunch, but under the constant scrutiny of the third Steward they carried bags, served as busboys in the Dining Room, ran errands and delivered messages, changed linens between trips and returned “room service” dishes. They also just might be able to get you a drink or sandwich when the bar or galley were closed.

If you wanted to call upon a Bell Hop, you would simply push the call button in your room. In every cabin there was an electric buzzer connected to this panel: If you pressed it once a Bell Hop would come right away, twice, and they would bring you ice water, three times, and they would come with a ladder to help you get into an upper bunk.

Keewatin has 105 cabins, and every one of them has hot and cold running water, reading lights and an electric fan. In 1907, few homes had such luxuries! Only the deluxe staterooms had private baths and toilets, however, if all the rooms didn’t have bathrooms, how do think people did if they needed the washroom?

Each of the other cabins was equipped with a “thunder mug”, in case privacy, or urgency, kept you from getting to these public washrooms. The Bell Hops would, of course, discretely deal with the “mugs” when you were finished with them.

One enterprising fifteen-year-old Hop, known to his friends as “the Miser”, would make sure the latches on the stateroom portholes were forced tightly shut so that passengers would have to call for help, thus earning a tip. He also offered tours of the Engine room, where he would make up fanciful names and explanations for everything.

Grand as she is, Keewatin is small compared to the great ocean liners, and the size of the accommodations is somewhere between what you would expect on a train and larger ship. With almost 300 people aboard, passengers and crew, she might seem a little crowded. This large open, airy, central space, with its many conversational seating arrangements and regularly upgraded furnishings, was one of the social centres of the vessel. 

This lower level was called the Flower Well lounge, but the crew called it The Swamp.  The carpets were seldom dry from watering all those plants in a lively ship. There was always a piano here, and Captain Jarman, Master of Keewatin in the late 40s, was known to delight passengers with his beautiful baritone voice.

We have arrived on the promenade deck, named for the outdoor walkway that encompasses this deck. You are welcome to follow me forward along the port or left side of the ship to peak into the various cabins. The cabins on this deck, although not as grand as the Deluxe Staterooms, are a little bigger and nicer than most of those on the lower deck, and they all have windows. They were also, of course, a little more expensive. As I said before, not as big as a hotel room, but spacious compared to a train. Cabins have been staged as they may have looked between 1907 and 1965. Feel free to explore the starboard or right-side cabins while I continue telling Keewatin’s story. 

Above our heads, you can see beautiful hand-painted glass made in Murano, Italy, and installed in Glasgow before the ship sailed for North America. It is all original and survived the splitting of the ship we spoke about on the cargo deck. We even have some replacement panes should any of these get damaged.

The three Stewardesses, who were the only female crew out of a cohort of 86, bunked together in here.  The Stewardesses tended to the needs of women and children on board, cleaned cabins, and vacuumed all carpets every day. They were also, however, highly respected members of the crew and helped to balance the youthful male energy of the Waiters and Bell Hops. 

One in particular stands out. Mary McNeil came aboard as Head Stewardess for Keewatin’s very first run with passengers in 1908 and retired in 1935. Throughout her service she was as much loved for her attentive care, especially of those suffering from seasickness, as she was admired for her calming professionalism in all circumstances, including some genuinely severe weather, like the great storm of 1913. She was always welcomed on the open Bridge by Captain Malcolm McPhee: Master of Keewatin for twenty years.

This is where the male Service Crew lived when off duty. This area was known as the FLIX: the Forward Living Quarters for the six to nine Bell Hops, five cooks and 18 Stewards.

As Jack Neilson, a former waiter recalled: “I have never worked longer hours, worked as hard physically, or had more fun than the Summer I spent on Keewatin.” Another Waiter reminisced: “On warm days, our quarters could be quite hot. Often the crew would drag their mattresses out onto the deck in front of the Forward Lounge. The officers, who slept above, would sometimes throw buckets of water on them.”

The crew quarters were, not surprisingly, a bit more Spartan and crowded, than the passenger cabins. Four or five men shared a room, sleeping in double bunks, but they spent little time there. 

Much like a hotel, Keewatin was designed so that crew members could move about her without interacting with passengers unless their duties required it. And, of course, they had to be turned out in a spotless uniform to do so. The steep gangway at the forward end of the FLIX in the Windlass Room allowed off duty crew to descend down to the cargo deck and move aft for meals et cetera.

Keewatin had two anchors forward and one aft. They weigh as much as a full-sized pickup truck each, and were raised and lowered by this windlass, which is the only piece of original machinery on board that still works. Before she could be moved in later life, the windlass was altered to run on compressed air instead of steam! 

We’re now going to make our way back aft again to the Grand Staircase. As we do, I encourage you to let your imagination fill the Flower Well lounge with relaxed and happy travellers.

This is the Grand Dining Room!

Imagine sitting down for dinner in this elegant space, with gleaming linen tablecloths, twelve-piece silverware settings and, always, fresh flowers on every table. The Dining Room served 120 people at a seating. With 288 passengers plus some crew members and the band eating here, they could have up to 3 sittings. Breakfast was informal Buffet style served from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 am. Dinner was 12:30 and Supper was 7:00 p.m. All the woodwork, cabinets, tables and chairs are original to 1907.

Now remember we are on a ship that might encounter rough water. How do you think they kept the dishes from sliding off the table? 

Before each table was laid with three tablecloths (in order to speed up the changeover between settings), the table was dampened which moistened the tablecloth making it grip the plates firmly. Stem glasses were only half filled, which reduced spillage.

Notice that almost all the seats are bolted down to keep them from moving around in rough weather. The only exception is this central table closest to the mirror.

Keewatin was perfectly situated to guarantee the very best. Great Lakes fish and produce from the Company’s gardens and greenhouses in Port McNicoll were always featured on the menu. Since each voyage only lasting two and half days, everything was perfectly fresh. All baking was done fresh on board. The portions were large, and every single entree was inspected by the Chief Steward AND the Head Cook before they were served. Great care was taken to ensure that every entree arrived hot and so all the plates were preheated in the warming cabinet in the middle of this room. On top, you can see one of the silver trays that waiters would use to bring out meals – and yes, the bowls are arranged in the same manner that waiters were expected to carry them!

This space is also where dishes and silverware would be cleaned. Dishes were originally done by hand, but in later years a dishwasher was installed. Between here and the kitchen is a wooden sink used by a man known as the Silver King. Not surprisingly, the silverware, emblazoned with the CP Steamships’ crest, were popular souvenirs. The Silver King charged waiters 25 cents per place setting per trip to ensure all silver was polished and accounted for. As the waiters had to pay for lost silverware, they appreciated the service!

While Keewatin offered French service in the dining room, the Galley crew of Keewatin was almost always Chinese. The importance and value of their work meant that they were well treated and respected. All were Canadian Citizens, and the Head Cook was paid the same as an officer. Usually, the Head Cook was the only member of the cooking staff who spoke English, and all communications from other crew went through him.

Welcome to the drawing room, perhaps the most attractive space on the entire ship.

The term Drawing Room doesn’t mean an art studio, although with the stunning views from here, I’m sure sketching and water colouring were common. “Drawing” is short for “Withdrawing”:  It was considered a women-only space. The Ladies were served tea and snacks by the Stewardesses rather than Waiters. 

Keewatin’s operating history spanned a period of tremendous social and political change for women in Canada. Each booth embodies a decade of Keewatin’s service, beginning with 1907 and ending in 1965, as well as the fashions, activities and social movements of each.

Originally, women were not allowed here in the gentleman’s lounge, but, in later years, ladies could come in if escorted by a gentleman. That may seem sexist, and it was! It was also the norm in licensed alcohol-serving establishments across Ontario at the time. These limits on liquor remained until 1947 when both the Dining Room and this area were allowed to sell alcohol. 

Notice the fumed oak wall panels with bas relief. They depict admittedly stereotypical inhabitants of the different countries of the British Empire done by a Swedish artisan while the ship was in Scotland.  

All the clocks on the ship are set at 9:15. On December 6, 1965, Chief Engineer, Gordon Gervais, wrote “9:15 Finished with engines forever” upon the engine room chalkboard. This marked the end of the S.S. Keewatin’s cruising history, 1907 to 1965.  

Please follow me as we make our way down this stairway and back to the Awning Deck. Be sure to watch your head – this stairway is quite steep. Please hold onto the railing.

While your eyes are doubtless drawn to the beautiful views offered by this space, I would like to draw your attention to the Douglas fir wooden planks we are standing on. This part of Keewatin began service as an open “veranda” deck, which means that these planks are part of the original decking installed on Keewatin’s promenade. In the 1920’s, this space would be enclosed, before it was formally renamed the ballroom in 1936. Beginning in the 1950s, movies were also shown here on an 8 mm projector. 

There isn’t a lot of acoustic privacy on board, so putting the band, the dancing, most of the drinking and partying back here beyond the Dining Saloon and Galley meant that those who wanted to enjoy some peace and quiet, or to put children to bed, could do so. Also, most of the tobacco smoke would blow harmlessly away behind the moving ship!