1

The most famous of the steamboats to operate on the upper Peace River was the S.S. D.A. Thomas. It was built as a vehicle to fulfill the dreams of David Alfred (D.A.) Thomas, Lord Rhondda, a major Welsh coal industry figure and millionaire. Rhondda was very exicited by the possibilites for mining as well as oil and natural gas in western Canada, especially on the upper Peace River. The area had been subject to mineral finds since the 1860s and the presence of oil, natural gas and "tar sands" was well known. To utilize these potential resources Rhondda created the Peace River Development Corporation whose staff was to explore, locate, survey and drill for these resources. To do this the Corporation needed river transportation and this was to be in the form of the S.S. D.A. Thomas.

2

The S.S. D.A. Thomas near the Early Gardens on the Shaftesbury Trail near Peace River Crossing.
Circa 1920s
Shaftesbury Trail, Alberta, Canada
TEXT ATTACHMENT


Credits:
Peace River Museum, Archives & Mackenzie Centre, 2008.056.001

3

To build his river transportation Lord Rhondda and the Peace River Development Corporation hired George Askew, a noted boat designer and builder based in Vancouver. It is not clear where the inspiration for the boat came from, Rhondda or Askew, but the design was incredible. The planned steamboat, a stern-wheeler over 160 feet in length with a gross tonnage of 2,000 tons, would be one of the largest steam vessels used in western Canada. In addtion to its size its components (staterooms, berths, dining halls) were luxurious for its time with electricity throughout as well as hot and cold running water. The S.S. D.A. Thomas was not just to be a vessel for exploration but a symbol of a new age of progress.

Another notable feature of the boat was that it was designed to run on oil as as well as coal and wood. Lord Rhondda was so convinced of the vast resources of oil to be located on the upper Peace River that his steamboat was equipped to burn these resources.

4

Builder's blueprint for the paddlewheel of the S.S. D.A. Thomas.
Circa 1915

Credits:
Peace River Museum, Archives & Mackenzie Centre, 87.1547.016

5

A blueprint of the rear portion of the main deck of the S.S. D.A. Thomas.
Circa 1915

Credits:
Peace River Museum, Archives & Mackenzie Centre, 87.1547.016

6

The S.S. D.A. Thomas was built at the West Peace River boat yards by George Askew, the designer, and a large crew of men. The engines, boilers and other equipment were shipped to near the community of Peace River Crossing and brought across the frozen river to the building site.

7

The West Peace River Boatyard under construction.
1915
West Peace River, Alberta, Canada

Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10,135

8

The hull of the S.S. D.A. Thomas under construction.
1915
West Peace River, Alberta, Canada

Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10139

9

Oil tanks for the S.S. D.A. Thomas.
1915
West Peace River, Alberta, Canada
TEXT ATTACHMENT


Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10,144

10

The hull and decks of the S.S. D.A. Thomas under construction.
1915-1916
West Peace River, Alberta, Canada
TEXT ATTACHMENT


Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10,146

11

One of the steam boilers of the S.S. D.A. Thomas being delivered to the building site.
1915-1916
Judah, Alberta, Canada
TEXT ATTACHMENT


Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10,149

12

The wheelshaft of the S.S. D.A. Thomas.
1915-1916
West Peace River, Alberta, Canada

Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A.10,153

13

The engine room of the S.S. D.A. Thomas.
1915-1916
The engine room of the S.S. D.A. Thomas

Credits:
Provincial Archives of Alberta, A. 10,155

14

The S.S. D.A. Thomas was completed and launched at Peace River Crossing in May 1915. The local newspaper, the Peace River Record, was aware of the magnitude of the occasion:

"Largest Inland Steamboat Launched Tuesday Evening.

The D.A. Thomas, built by Peace River Tramway and Navigation Company, the Largest Steamboat from Great Lakes to Pacific Coast--Has Carrying Capacity with Scows of 2,000 Tons--Built for Oil Trade and Equipped with Oil Storage and Fuel Tanks and Oil Burning Boilers.

The completion of a long winter's cork at the Law ship yards at West Peace River was marked on Tuesday evening of this week, when sharp at eight o'clock the last prop was knocked from the ways and the steamer D.A. Thomas, the largest steamship between the great lakes and the Pacific coast, slid gracefully into the waters of the Peace River."


Source:

Peace River Record Volume 11, No. 42, June 2, 1915