''Skuzzy'' was a

sternwheeler A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were w ...

built by Canadian Pacific Railway contractor

Andrew Onderdonk Andrew Onderdonk (30 August 1848 – 21 June 1905) was an American construction contractor who worked on several major projects in the West, including the San Francisco seawall in California and the Canadian Pacific Railway in British C ...

Spuzzum, British Columbia Spuzzum is an unincorporated settlement in British Columbia, Canada. Because it is on the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately north of the community of Hope, it is often referred to as being "beyond Hope". Environment Spuzzum lies in a constric ...

, and was launched on the Fraser River on May 4, 1882. ''Skuzzy'' was the first sternwheeler to ever navigate the perilous rapids north of

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

in the

Fraser Canyon The Fraser Canyon is a major landform of the Fraser River where it descends rapidly through narrow rock gorges in the Coast Mountains en route from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia to the Fraser Valley. Colloquially, the term "Fraser ...

. Andrew Onderdonk held the contract to build the section of railway from

Boston Bar Boston Bar is an unincorporated community in the Fraser Canyon of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Name The name dates from the time of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush (1858–1861). A "bar" is a gold-bearing sandbar or sandy riverbank, and ...

to Lytton. It was a contract worth $2,573,640. He built the ''Skuzzy'' with the intention of moving railway supplies by steamer to the camps north of Yale via the Fraser River instead of using pack trains over the Cariboo Road, which is a low but difficult pass between Yale and Spuzzum. A ship would save him $10 per ton in road tolls alone. The ''Skuzzy'' was built to transport goods to the current places of construction of the CPR or, the Canadian Pacific Railway. Because transporting materials along the Cariboo Road took too long to get to the site,

built the ''Skuzzy'' and used the Fraser River to his advantage. The "Skuzzy" would have to be piloted by an expert sailor as they would be navigating through the whirlpools and rapids of

Hell's Gate Hells Gate or Hell's Gate or Hell Gate may refer to: Places Africa * Hell's Gate National Park, Kenya Antarctica * Hells Gate Moraine, Victoria Land Asia * Nyalam Town, Tibet * A location in Nampong, Arunachal Pradesh, India * The Darvaza g ...

After she was built, Ausbury Insley piloted the ship up river on May 17, 1882. Captain Insley was able to guide the ''Skuzzy'' upstream through the whirlpools and rapids and under the

Alexandra Bridge The Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge, also known as the Alexandra Bridge or Interprovincial Bridge, is a steel truss cantilever bridge spanning the Ottawa River between Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. In addition to carrying vehicl ...

which had been built by the Royal Engineers in 1863, but when Insley got the ''Skuzzy'' to the entrance of the Hell's Gate Canyon he could take her no further. The Fraser was at it highest point in forty years, and passage was impossible. Onderdonk brought in a captain and engineer from

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

. Under their command, on September 7, the ''Skuzzy'' again attempted the rapids at Hell's Gate and once again failed. Onderdonk then had ringbolts drilled into the canyon's walls, and he stationed 125

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

railway employees above. Observers were betting on the success of the journey, and odds were 100:1 against. Hell's Gate, British Columbia 1

Finally, with the aid of her steam capstan winching in the cable and 125 men pulling at her tow rope, the ''Skuzzy'' made it through Hell's Gate. It took 16 days to make the 16 mile trip to Boston Bar. The ''Skuzzy'' became the first sternwheeler to arrive in Lytton.

Notes

External links

* * * {{Steamboats British Columbia Paddle steamers of British Columbia History of British Columbia Fraser Canyon 1882 ships

Notes

Further reading

External links