''Belle of Temagami'', generally referred to as ''Belle'', was a wooden

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

built and used in

Temagami Temagami, formerly spelled as Timagami, is a municipality in northeastern Ontario, Canada, in the Nipissing District with Lake Temagami at its heart. The Temagami region is known as ''n'Daki Menan'', the homeland of the area's First Nations commu ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada during the first half of the 20th century. She operated as a passenger steamer on

Lake Temagami Lake Temagami, formerly spelled as Lake Timagami, is a lake in Nipissing District in northeastern Ontario, Canada, situated approximately 80 km north of North Bay. The lake's name comes from ''dimii-agamiing'' "tih-MEE-uh-guh-MEENG", which me ...

where she brought travellers to cottages, hotels, lodges and camps from the lakeside landing near the Temagami railway station. She was also used to deliver supplies on the lake. Three companies owned ''Belle'' throughout her years of service.

Characteristics

The steamer had a length of , making her the largest vessel ever to cruise Lake Temagami. ''Belle'' had two decks, a wide

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

and a depth of . Her engine consisted of one

cylinder A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infin ...

, one

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, central h ...

and one

propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...

. She had a , a and a hull consisting primarily of wood. ''Belle'' was capable of carrying up to 300 passengers but 175 was the licensed limit. An onboard

snack bar A snack bar usually refers to an inexpensive food counter that is part of a permanent structure where snack foods and light meals are sold. Description A beach snack bar is often a small building situated high on the sand. Besides soft drink ...

allowed passengers to buy snack foods while aboard the vessel.

History

''Belle'' was built in Temagami, Ontario during 1906 by G. A. Pontbriand. Completed and launched the same year, she was first owned by the O'Connor Steamboat and Hotel Company which had been established by the businessman Dan O'Connor in 1904. By 1910, the company was operating a fleet of 10 steamers on Lake Temagami, of which ''Belle'' was the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

. Business declined precipitously when

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

began in 1914, bringing some hard times to the tourism industry on Lake Temagami. During this time smaller less costly boats replaced ''Belle'', which had been left in the lakeside landing. Two converted

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

s, ''Kokomis'' and ''Winonia'', were normally used to haul freight. ''Kokomis'' became the main vessel to carry passengers and mail. Belle of Temagami at dock

The end of World War I in 1918 marked the beginning of a new tourism era in Temagami. Several new lodges, camps and cottages were built and it was common for 300 people to crowd the train station platform. A new group, the Perron and Marsh Navigation Company, bought and operated ''Belle'' during this period. She collided with the Keewaydin dock around 1930, nearly destroying it. The Temagami Boat Company had bought ''Belle'' by 1936 and she was operated to 1939. She had her back broken around 1939 while hauling up on land at Camp Wanapitei, a youth camp situated on the northern shore of Ferguson Bay. She was still the biggest boat afloat between

James Bay James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost par ...

and

Manitoulin Island Manitoulin Island is an island in Lake Huron, located within the borders of the Canadian province of Ontario, in the bioregion known as Laurentia. With an area of , it is the largest lake island in the world, large enough that it has over 100 ...

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrology, Hydrologically, it comprises the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as Lake Michigan, to which it is connected by the , Strait ...

in 1940. After taking some damage from dock collisions and

shoal In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. It ...

groundings in her career, she sank in her winter quarters on Muddy Water Bay during the winter of 1939 or 1940. The cause of her sinking was likely the loosening of

oakum Oakum is a preparation of tarred fibre used to seal gaps. Its main traditional applications were in shipbuilding, for caulking or packing the joints of timbers in wooden vessels and the deck planking of iron and steel ships; in plumbing, for s ...

in her seams. After sitting in the bay waterlogged for at least a year, she was salvaged, repaired, and returned to duty. Passenger traffic declined during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and business tumbled. During this time the Temagami Boat Company suffered financially and kept ''Belle'' out of service for most of the war years. The Temagami Boat Company was bought out by the

Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway The Ontario Northland Railway is a Canadian railway operated by the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission, a provincial Crown agency of the government of Ontario. Originally built to develop the Lake Timiskaming and Lake Nipissing are ...

(now called the

Ontario Northland Railway The Ontario Northland Railway is a Canadian railway operated by the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission, a provincial Crown agency of the government of Ontario. Originally built to develop the Lake Timiskaming and Lake Nipissing area ...

) in 1944. At the time of purchase, ''Belle'' was the only steamer left on Lake Temagami. The T&NO Railway later decided that she did not fit with their ambitious plans to modernize the boating operation on Lake Temagami and was dismantled on the shore of Muddy Water Bay in 1945. She was replaced in 1946 by ''Aubrey Cosens VC'', a faster diesel-powered boat named after a World War II hero who was awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

. ''Belle'' was the last passenger steamer in

Northern Ontario Northern Ontario is a primary geographic and quasi-administrative region of the Canadian province of Ontario, the other primary region being Southern Ontario. Most of the core geographic region is located on part of the Superior Geological Provi ...

waters. In her peak years she did a regular daily run on Lake Temagami through the summer months, cruising down to the camps and the aboriginal village on Bear Island, stopping at the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

post, serving lunch and refreshments on board, leaving at 10:00 a.m. and starting back up at 5:50 p.m., all for a couple of dollars a trip.

References

External links

*{{cite web, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrwgZBvVsIc, title=1940's Steamer "Belle" Lake Temagami Ontario, website=YouTube, accessdate=2014-08-21 Steamships of Ontario Passenger ships of Canada 1906 ships Ships built in Ontario Transport in Temagami History of Temagami