''Normac'' is a

floating restaurant A floating restaurant is a vessel, usually a large steel barge or hulk, used as a restaurant on water. The ''Jumbo Kingdom'', formerly located at Aberdeen in Hong Kong, was at one time the world's largest floating restaurant, until it sank at s ...

boat that was launched as a fire tug, named the ''James R. Elliot''. She was built at the Jenks Shipbuilding Company in

Port Huron, Michigan Port Huron is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of St. Clair County. The population was 30,184 at the 2010 census. The city is adjacent to Port Huron Township but is administered separately. Located along the St. Clair ...

, in 1902.

History

After she lost her usefulness as a fire tug, she was sold in 1930 to the

Owen Sound Transportation Company Limited The Owen Sound Transportation Company, Limited was the forerunner of the enterprise that currently operates the vehicle and passenger ferry - M.S. ''Chi-Cheemaun'' - between Tobermory on the Bruce Peninsula, and South Baymouth on Manitoulin ...

. At that time, she was taken to the Georgian Bay Shipbuilding Company at Midland for conversion into a combination package freighter and passenger

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

, and from a steamer to a

diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...

powered vessel. In 1931, the vessel was renamed the ''Normac'' which was the namesake of captain "Norman Mckay," founder and general manager of

, which is still running today. Mckay was the captain of the company flagship SS ''Manitoulin''. The ''Normac'' sailed the

Owen Sound Owen Sound ( 2021 Census population 21,612) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The county seat of Grey County, it is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi and Sydenham Rivers on an inlet of Georgian Bay. The primary tourist attract ...

to Sault Ste. Marie route via

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Castl ...

and the

North Channel North Channel may refer to: *North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland) *North Channel (Ontario), body of water along the north shore of Lake Huron, Canada *North Channel, Hong Kong *Canal du Nord, France {{geodis ...

, commencing July 16, 1931. From 1932, she sailed the

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 ...

- Tobermory route and in later years, along this same route with the S.S. ''Norisle''. After the M.S ''Norgoma'' was converted to diesel fuel and placed on the Tobermory run, in 1964 the ''Normac'' took up the role as an automobile ferry across the North Channel from Meldrum Bay to Blind River and Cockburn Island, a portion of its original run from Owen Sound. ''Normac'' remained on this route until the close of the 1968 season when she was retired. She was sold to Donald F. Lee of Port Lambton Ontario, and moved from Owen Sound to Wallaceburg Ontario, where she spent the winter. She was then sold in 1969, to John Letnik, and was converted into

Captain John's Harbour Boat Restaurant Captain John's Harbour Boat Restaurant (incorporated as 1518756 Ontario Inc.) was a restaurant and banquet hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. For most of its existence it was located in the MS ''Jadran'', a former Adriatic passenger ship that was ...

, a floating restaurant in

Toronto Harbour Toronto Harbour or Toronto Bay is a bay on the north shore of Lake Ontario, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a natural harbour, protected from Lake Ontario waves by the Toronto Islands. Today, the harbour is used primarily for recreational b ...

. The ''Normac'' arrived at Toronto in her Owen Sound colours, and was soon painted all white. Shortly afterward the steel hull was repainted bright red, to make it more noticeable from the street. Permanently moored at the foot of

Yonge Street Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. Once the southernmost leg of provincial Hi ...

, she was severely damaged in 1981 when the Toronto Island ferry ''

Trillium ''Trillium'' (trillium, wakerobin, toadshade, tri flower, birthroot, birthwort, and sometimes "wood lily") is a genus of about fifty flowering plant species in the family Melanthiaceae. ''Trillium'' species are native to temperate regions of No ...

'' struck her, causing a slow leak and her sinking two weeks later. The ''Normac'' was raised in 1986 and refurbished to serve as a floating restaurant in other communities. With her

amidships This glossary of nautical terms is an alphabetical listing of terms and expressions connected with ships, shipping, seamanship and navigation on water (mostly though not necessarily on the sea). Some remain current, while many date from the 17th t ...

state rooms removed, she served as Tokyo Joe's Marina Bar and Grill, a floating restaurant and cocktail lounge at

Port Dalhousie, Ontario Port Dalhousie is a community in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Known for its waterfront appeal, it is home to the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta and is historically significant as the terminus for the first three (19th century) routes of th ...

until she was gutted by fire in 2011. She was restored and became the Riverboat Mexican Grill. The now vacant ship remains docked at Port Dalhousie Pier Marina.

References

Ferries of the Owen Sound Transportation Company Transport in Manitoulin District 1902 ships Fireboats of Detroit Buildings and structures in St. Catharines Floating restaurants Ships built in Port Huron, Michigan {{Oldest surviving ships (pre-1919)