Sad news for those familiar with an old Saugatuck landmark

[J T]

http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/sw ... r-45-years

After 44 years, the S.S. Keewatin is going to have a new home. I was born in July of 1967, and three months later the Keewatin was brought to Saugatuck where it has sat in the same place for my entire lifetime. A lot of my time growing up was spent in Saugatuck, and seeing that old ship sitting in Kalamazoo Lake was always a sure thing, despite all the changes to Saugatuck over the years. But...it's time for her to go back home...to the port she spent nearly 60 years shuttling passengers in and out of. Hopefully I can be there to see the good ship off and to document its departure. I have to admit, hearing this news yesterday made me a little sad. She will be missed!

What does this have to do with trains, you might ask? Well, the S.S. Keewatin was owned by the Candian Pacific Railway.

I wish I had gotten more pics of it over the years.

[BB]

Nice ones. It's in a neat location in the lake. This year is the first I've seen it up close other then from I-196.

There's another former Canadian ferry in Lake Michigan, the MV Abegweit which is now the Columbia Yacht Club in Chicago, was owned by CN.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Abegweit_%281947%29

[J T]

Brandon, I almost put your name in the thread title because I knew this would interest you. Apparently they will be pulling this out of Saugatuck in mid-October and I plan on being there to document it...and maybe even "chase" it up the coast. Keep your eyes and ears open as it will be coming by your area.

[bctrainfan]

Funny how we get attached to mechanical things, especially ships (and trains!) and they take on a human-like personality. Can see how its a little sad to see "an old friend" leave, hope she goes to a good home!

[J T]

Update...apparently News 8 incorrectly reported that it would be leaving in October. Now I'm reading that it won't be until next spring. Well, that gives me some time to get more shots before it leaves.

[BB]

Brandon, I almost put your name in the thread title because I knew this would interest you. Apparently they will be pulling this out of Saugatuck in mid-October and I plan on being there to document it...and maybe even "chase" it up the coast. Keep your eyes and ears open as it will be coming by your area.

Here's some pictures from the inside. Looks pretty nice.
http://www.boatnerd.com/news/newsthumbs ... s_1463.htm

June departure now...
http://www.hollandsentinel.com/feature/ ... -departure

[BB]

Keewatin tow from Douglas to Port McNicoll calls for layover at DeTour

4/23 - The plan had been for the 350-foot 3,886-ton former Canadian Pacific Great Lakes steamship Keewatin to be waiting for Travel Dynamics’ 257-foot 2,354-ton Yorktown to greet her on the event of her first arrival at Saugatuck on June 17. But plans now call for the Keewatin to be towed away earlier to lay over at De Tour, Michigan, in preparation for a planned arrival back at Port McNicoll, Ontario, on June 23. That date is significant because it will be exactly one hundred years to the day since the Keewatin first sailed from Port McNicoll, after the new port was opened on Georgian Bay in 1912.

The Keewatin should be at DeTour, however, on June 20 when the Yorktown passes on her way to the Soo Locks at Sault Ste Marie and Lake Superior. As DeTour is on the main St Marys River shipping channel it is quite likely that the two ships will come within eyeshot of each other, as the Keewatin will probably be scheduled for departure for Port McNicoll the following day.

The Edwardian-era passenger ship was built on the Clyde in 1907 and carried up to 288 passengers. Roland Peterson, owner of the Tower Marina at Douglas, Michigan, purchased the Keewatin after her retirement in 1965 in order to save her from the scrappers and moved her in 1967 to Douglas, near Saugatuck, where he and his wife Diane have maintained her as a nautical museum at for the past forty-two years.

Her latest owner, Toronto-based Skyline International Development Inc, took possession in October 2011. As part of the deal, Skyline is dredging Saugatuck-Douglas harbor so that it can tow the ship away. And in honor of the couple that has preserved the Keewatin for more than four decades ownership of the vessel has been vested with a not-for-profit organization called the R J and Diane Peterson Great Lakes and S S Keewatin Foundation.

The Keewatin will become the historic centerpiece of Port McNicoll, which is being developed by Skyline International as a $1 billion 800-acre resort. About seventy minutes north of Toronto, with six and a half miles of shoreline, the new resort community will feature homes, condominiums, cottages, hotels, shops and marinas.

In their heyday, the Keewatin and sister ship Assiniboia operated weekly cruises from Port McNicoll to Sault Ste Marie and Thunder Bay, with the Keewatin sailing on Wednesdays and the Assiniboia on Saturdays after the arrival of the Canadian Pacific boat train from Toronto.

While Douglas may be losing the forty-two-year presence of its Edwardian cruise ship museum, the arrival of Travel Dynamic’s Yorktown will now give the area an active cruise ship. Seven calls are planned by the Yorktown at Saugatuck this summer.

For those wanting to cruise the Great Lakes in 2012, Travel Dynamics International offers a full program of thirteen cruises between June and September. Further details can be obtained from cruise@cruisepeople.co.uk.

Cruising the Great Lakes

[J T]

"Forty-two-year presence" in Douglas? Someone needs to learn some simple math.

[trnwatcher]

"Forty-two-year presence" in Douglas? Someone needs to learn some simple math.

maybe it's the exchange rate between the C$ and USD$ ????

[MP73point4]

"Forty-two-year presence" in Douglas? Someone needs to learn some simple math.

moved her in 1967 to Douglas, near Saugatuck, where he and his wife Diane have maintained her as a nautical museum at for the past forty-two years.

Moved it there in '67, museum opened in 1970. 1970 to 2012 is where they're getting the 42 years even though it has enjoyed a 45 year presence.

[J T]

"Forty-two-year presence" in Douglas? Someone needs to learn some simple math.

moved her in 1967 to Douglas, near Saugatuck, where he and his wife Diane have maintained her as a nautical museum at for the past forty-two years.

Moved it there in '67, museum opened in 1970. 1970 to 2012 is where they're getting the 42 years even though it has enjoyed a 45 year presence.

Yes, the museum has existed for 42 years.

But what they should have said later in the article was this: "While Douglas may be losing the forty-four-year presence of its Edwardian cruise ship..."

[BB]

Keewatin to leave Kalamazoo Lake on June 2

5/4 - Douglas, Mich. – The historic steamship Keewatin will be leaving its home of more than 40 years at the beginning of June. Work continues on the vessel and in Lake Kalamazoo in Douglas for a departure date of June 2.

“It depends on the weather,” said Eric Conroy, spokesman for ship owner Gil Blutrich of Canada. Blutrich is chairman and president of Skyline International Development Inc., a private Canadian investment and management company. Blutrich plans to make the ship part of a renovated waterfront and tourist attraction in Port McNicoll, Ontario.

The ship could be towed out June 1, Conroy said. Strong winds are the deciding factor. The 48-foot wide ship will be towed through a 50-foot wide dredged channel in Kalamazoo Lake. “It’s that tight,” Conroy said, with little room for the ship to be pushed around by winds.

The ship will be taken to Lake Michigan to DeTour Village in the Upper Peninsula, where it will wait to be towed into Port McNicoll on June 23 — the 100th anniversary of the when the ship first arrived in the port and the 45th anniversary of the year Douglas marine owner R.J. Peterson had it towed to West Michigan.

A waterfront park with historic attractions is planned for the Keewatin.

The ship was built in 1907 in Scotland then brought to the Great Lakes where it carried cargo and passengers for the Canadian Pacific Railway. It was retired in 1965 and headed for the scrap yard. Tower Marina’s Peterson bought the Keewatin and brought it to Douglas in 1967 where it has been a museum.

The modern cruise ship Yorktown will arrive in Saugatuck June 17.

[J T]

Looks like I'm taking Friday, June 1, off from work. And if it happens on Saturday, so much for going to Durand.

[Norm]

Jim,

Like Gregg Pullano your photos are something special. They portray things as they are in this day and age, or in the age of steam.

Keep up the good work.

[J T]

Jim,

Like Gregg Pullano your photos are something special. They portray things as they are in this day and age, or in the age of steam.

Keep up the good work.

Thanks for the kind words, Norm. Between myself and BB, I hope we can capture some truly artistic and historical photos next month. (you ARE making the trip down to document this move, right BB?)

[BB]

I'll have to see about that, if I'm able to I'd be there. I didn't realize how tight some of the curves in the river are while looking at the satellite image. Hopefully it's a nice day they do the tow on.

Douglas, Mich.
Keewatin is due to leave Douglas about June 2 but will no longer lay over at De Tour, but will stop at Mackinaw City instead on her way back to Port McNicoll. The tug Wendy Anne will tow the Keewatin to the unused ferry docks. The original plan to stop at De Tour was scrapped when the owners required security procedures.

[J T]

Keep the updates coming, B. Thanks!

[BB]

Looks like a change of plans.

Lake Michigan Carferry Keewatin could depart Douglas sooner than thought

5/25 - Douglas, Mich. - The historic passenger ship Keewatin could be towed out of Douglas three days sooner than anticipated. The ship is now set to leave at 7 a.m. Wednesday, May 30, according to Felicia Fairchild, executive director of the Saugatuck Douglas Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The move depends on the weather and could be delayed until Thursday, May 31. The ship was originally scheduled to leave Saturday, June 2.

Saugatuck and Douglas officials will say farewell to the 105-year-old vessel on Monday, May 28, with a ceremony at the Union Street pier where the ship has been docked for more than four decades. The ceremony will be after the 10 a.m. Memorial Day parade and ceremony at Beery Field.

The 48-foot-wide vessel will be guided through a freshly dredged channel 50 feet wide along the west end of Kalamazoo Lake to the deeper water in front of Coral Gables. From there, the vessels will head out of the channel into Lake Michigan.

Once in the open water, the ship will be taken to Mackinaw City, where it will wait to be towed into Port McNicoll on June 23 the 100th anniversary of the when the ship first arrived in the port and the 45th anniversary of the year Douglas marine owner R.J. Peterson had it towed to West Michigan.

Bob VandeVusse, Holland Sentinel

[J T]

Looks like a change of plans.

Lake Michigan Carferry Keewatin could depart Douglas sooner than thought

5/25 - Douglas, Mich. - The historic passenger ship Keewatin could be towed out of Douglas three days sooner than anticipated. The ship is now set to leave at 7 a.m. Wednesday, May 30, according to Felicia Fairchild, executive director of the Saugatuck Douglas Convention and Visitors Bureau.

[~Z~]

Hey JT, since now you have Saturday free, I have a spot still left in my car to carpool to Durand Trussell Sr and Trussell Jr have the other two passenger seats called.