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Between 1903 and 1930 steamboats were to have a huge impact on the evolution of the Peace River region. In themselves they created a new industry based on their design, building, maintenance and operation. They were to becoma an integral part of the area's economy and urban development. The layout of communities such as Peace River Crossing were to evolve around the docks and warehouses required by these boats.As noted throughout this exhibit steamboats were to be vehicles of dreams for a number of organizations and individuals. They were frequently not always successful but they were seen as essential.
Harder to quantify in terms of impact was the steamboats' roles in creating a regional identity in the upper Peace River. One of the links for the communities on the upper Peace River was the regularly scheduled runs of steamboats from 1903 to 1930 and these vessels were an important form of communication. When steamboats arrived everyone stopped what they were doing and went to see who was traveling on them. Local newspapers such as the Peace River Record regularly carried lists of passengers for the boats as well as news regarding them, reflecting the importance of steamboats.
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Jean Cameron Kelley's memories of steamboats at Peace River Crossing in 1914.1914
Peace River Crossing, Alberta, Canada
Jean Cameron Kelley, an early resident of Peace River Crossing, had fond memories of the steamboats on the Peace River:
"The trading companies had boats plying on the Peace between Hudson's Hope and Fort Vermilion. The steamers were all stern-wheelers for while the river is wide the channel is too narrow for a side-wheeler. In 1914, the Hudson's Bay steamer was the old "Peace River," which was replaced the following year by the "Athabasca River". We sometimes had dances in the dining rooms of these boats, and another pleasurable occasion was when they ran a twelve mile excursion. Whenever the familiar deep throaty hoot was heard down the river, everyone dropped everything and tore for the Hudson's Landing to see who had come in from Hudson Hope or Fort Vermilion. The stern-wheelers only travelled during daylight so at night they were tied up."
Jean Cameron Kelley. 'Peace River Crossing, 1914.' "I Remember" Peace River, Alberta. Edited by Katharine Hoskin. Published by the Women's Insitute of Peace River, Alberta, 1975-6.
Credits:Jean Cameron Kelley. 'Peace River Crossing, 1914.'
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It is also clear that many residents of the upper Peace River saw steamboats as a symbol of a new age of progress. Canoes, rafts and scows had been replaced by larger and quicker vessels and to some, the world seemed smaller. Perhaps the best expression of this sentiment can be found in the journals of Mary Lawrence, a Fort Vermilion resident, who linked steamboats (in the form of the S.S. Peace River) with the "strange wonderful new world" of 1907.4
A description of embarking on the S.S. Peace River from Fort Vermilion in 1907.July 1907
Fort Vermilion, Alberta, Canada
In 1907 Mary Lawrence describes the departure of her family aboard the S.S. Peace River from their home at Fort Vermilion:
"The last morning, opening brightly in July, Fred [Lawrence] took us across river and drove us the seven miles by buckboard to the Hudson's Bay Company's Post, to the steamer [S.S. Peace River]. During the previous days we had been getting our things together. We were used to travel and ready to leave. The steamer was whistling. We pulled away from each small familiar sight with a wrench of something uprooted. One moment we were calling good-by to Fred and then we were passing the first point, rounding out of sight. Smoke shadow and wake wove and blended, braided and unravelled as the wind and course shifted. Already the children had forgotten! Already they were inspecting a strange wonderful new world! Their minds gasped with the thought of it!"
Mary B. Lawrence, quoted from: Wilderness Outpost: The Fort Vermilion Memoir of Mary B. Lawrence, 1898-1907., edited by Marilee Cranna Toews. Edmonton: The Alberta Records Publication Board, Historical Society of Alberta, 2008, pp. 209-210.
In this colorful description Lawrence clearly links the use of a steamboat on the Peace River with the "strange wonderful new world" of the early 20th century.
Credits:Marilee Toews, editor. Wilderness Outpost., pp. 209-210.
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The S.S. D.A. Thomas and S.S. Athabasca River at Peace River Crossing.Circa 1918-1930
Peace River Crossing, Alberta, Canada
Credits:Peace River Museum, Archives & Mackenzie Centre, 2008.056.003
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The S.S. D.A. Thomas heading upriver from Peace River Crossing.circa 1916-1930
Peace River Crossing, Alberta, Canada
Credits:Peace River Museum, Archives & Mackenzie Centre, 72.453y
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