1

The First Travellers on Okanagan Lake
Before European Contact
Okanagan Lake

Credits:
Line Drawing by Dave Seymour

2

Thomas Dorling Shorts Begins Commercial Transportation on Okanagan Lake
1883
Okanagan Lake

Credits:
Okanagan Historical Vignettes, Kelowna Museum and Okanagan Regional Library for the National Adult Literacy Database
Photos: Greater Vernon Museum and Archives

3

The Orchard City Captained by Thomas Shorts
Pre-1909
Peachland British Columbia

Credits:
Peachland Historical Society

4

The age of the steam boat on Okanagan Lake began on April 21, 1886 with the launch of the "Mary Victoria Greenhow" captained by Thomas Shorts.

The Mary Victoria Greenhow was a screw steamer built by Pringle & Hamill of Lansdowne for Thomas Shorts and Thomas Greenhow.

5

S.S. Aberdeen, Lake Okanagan's First Sternwheel Steamship
Late 1890s
Wharf in Peachland, British Columbia

Credits:
Peachland Historical Society
6th Report of the Okanagan Historical Society, and Sessional Papers 1878, pp. 715-728

6

The S.S. Aberdeen was the first of the steam-powered sternwheeler ships built for Okanagan Lake. Launched on May 22, 1893 by the Canadian Pacific Railway, the S.S. Aberdeen took her name from the serving Governor General of Canada, Sir John Campbell Hamilton Gordon, 7th Earl and 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair (Governor General: 1893 - 1898). Measuring 146 feet long and 30 feet across, the Aberdeen made nineteen stops. Waiting passengers on shore waved a white cloth in daytime, or lit two fires at night to signal the ship to call into Peachland for pickup.

Completing a trunk line of the Canadian Pacific Railroad to Okanagan Lake meant that eager settlers could come to Peachland; until then travel to this western shoreline meant hazardous horseback rides, over steep mountain trails or canoeing across the lake.

The Aberdeen retired from service when larger vessels steamed onto the lake.

7

S.S. Okanagan, 1907-1932
1907
Okanagan Lake Peachland British Columbia

Credits:
OKANAGAN ANTIQUE & CLASSIC BOAT SOCIETY

8

In 1907 the S.S. Okanagan joined the S.S. Aberdeen on the Lake to meet the demands of newscomers travelling and settling. This new sternwheeler was called the S.S. Okanagan. She was 193 feet long (59 metres) and carried 250 passengers steaming the length of the lake in three and a quarter hours at full speed of 15 miles per hour. Today, the stern salon of the S.S. Okanagan is on display with the S.S. Sicamous at the Maritime Museum in Penticton.

Refrence: http://www.nald.ca/CLR/okanagan/history/4boats.pdf

9

S.S. Sicamous Approaching Peachland from Trepanier Wharf in 1920
1914 - 1936
Okanagan Lake Peachland British Columbia

Credits:
Peachland Historical Society

10

The SS Sicamous was launched on May 19, 1914, and went into service on July 1, 1914, just in time to carry many of the early settlers off to World War I. The SS Sicamous was 200.5 feet, steel-hulled and had a gross tonnage of 1785.65. The SS Sicamous had been built in Ontario and assembled at Okanagan Landing. The sternwheelers brought supplies to lakeshore towns and took the fruit harvests to markets across Canada on onto distant shores. Peachland fruit, especially peaches, gained a worldwide reputation for taste and quality.

The CPR sternwheelers provided first-class service to passengers who enjoyed staterooms and fine food dining. The Sicamous was the last of the stately sternwheelers and made her last run in 1936. As roads were built, and cars and trucks became even more widely available, ferry service from the Westside for Peachland residents travelling to Kelowna meant the need for the steamboats had come to an end. The SS Sicamous is now berthed in Penticton and is open to the public.

11

M.V. Pentowna served on Okanagan Lake 1926 - 1973
1926 - 1973
Okanagan Lake Peachland British Columbia

Credits:
Peachland Historical Society

12

Pre-fabricated in Prince Rupert and transported by rail over 1000 miles from the Pacific coast for final re-assembly in Kelowna by the Canadian National Railways, the Pentowna competed for the passenger and freight service on the 104 kilometre route between Penticton and Okanagan Landing near Vernon. The ship could carry up to 200 passengers and cargo, traveling the length of Okanagan Lake twice a day.

13

"Wrath of the Maiden": the M.V. Pentowna damages the Peachland dock on her maiden voyage
1926
Peachland British Columbia

Credits:
Peachland Historical Society

14

On her maiden voyage in 1926, the Pentowna accelerated forward instead of reverse and rammed the Peachland docks doing considerable damage to the docks. The Pentowna carried mail for those that lived on the lake because of its speed. It is also rumoured that a barge veered off course and hit the beach, and a tugboat tried to save it resulting in two trapped boats instead of one. There are tales that note that the Pentowna saved both vessels.