The Keewatin Takes a Starring Role Bring Her on Home Shaftesbury Has Been Making Murdoch Mysteries for Over a Decade
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Tonnage (Gross Registered Ton) What Made It Go 3,856 BUILDER: Fairfi eld Shipbuilding & Engineering Co, Govan, Scotland YARD NUMBER: 453 CONSTRUCTION: Steel and iron COMMISSIONED: February 20, 1907 LAUNCHED: July 6, 1907 - berth 6 LENGTH: 350 ft. (106.68m) BEAM: 43.8 ft. (13.35m) DRAFT: 16 ft. (4.87m) DEPTH: 26 ft. (7.92m) SPEED: 14 Knots (16m or 26km/hr) HORSE POWER: 3300 IHP Reaching a top speed of 14 knots, the Keewatin ran on a quadruple-expansion reciprocating steam engine, which employed double-acting cylinders of PROPULSION: Single Screw progressively increasing diameter and/or stroke, which divided the work of the engine into four equal portions for each expansion stage. The result was Quadruple Expansion Reciprocating a smoother faster-responding engine that offered less vibration and was more Steam Engine and 4 Coal-fi red desirable for large passenger ships. Scotch Boilers The Keewatin’s Scotch boiler design allowed hot fl ue gases to pass through tubes in a tank of water and used multiple separate furnaces to create heating DEPARTED SCOTLAND: areas for the furnace’s capacity—for more effi cient operation. September 14, 1907 The single screw propeller—which transmitted power from rotational motion to thrust—had fi xed blades rotating around a horizontal axis or propeller shaft. Single Propeller The Great Lakes Fleet Canadian Pacific Railways was continuing to expand their steamship fleet, having previously purchased theAlberta , the Athabasca, and the Algoma from one of Fairfield’s competitors. While CPR executives knew the ships that would become the S.S. Keewatin and her sister ship, the S.S. Assiniboia, were too long to be transported up the Lake Erie canals, the company had previously cut ships in half for transport and successfully reassembled them. With their length not an impediment to purchase, CPR agreed to buy the ships to add to their Great Lakes passenger fleet. House flag of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company By 1916, Canadian Pacific Railroad made the decision to allow the newer, more modern Manitoba, Assiniboia and Keewatin to deal with the more demanding passenger trade, while the older Athabasca and Alberta would provide freight-only service. S.S. Keewatin 5 5 Restored to Its Former Glory Elegantly Appointed and Furnished by the T. Eaton Company Travellers could fi nd sustenance for the body and soul in a fully-furnished Edwardian dining room, complete with fi ne china place settings, sterling silver and high quality linens. The menu is said to have equalled that of some of the fi nest hotels in the country. The Flower Pot Lounge boasted a grand piano and, for more than a decade of the ship’s operation, high-quality furnishing from the T. Eaton Company. It served as a comfortable space for relaxing and entertainment. A similarly appointed lounge was designated just for the ladies. The scenic majesty of Georgian Bay and blue waters of Lake Superior could be viewed in gracious comfort from the Panoramic Room on the stern, a space that could be artfully transformed into a ballroom for music and dancing in the evening. The bar featured marvellously carved walls and panels, perfect for inspiring scintillating conversations. Always in Excellent Taste Throughout its service, the S.S. Keewatin featured outstanding art and design by important artists and artisans. A revolving collection of work from well-known Canadian illustrators and artists was exhibited on public area walls. Too, travellers could marvel at the large and brilliantly coloured collection of stained glass panels acquired by the builders from Murano, Italy in 1907 and used in skylights in both the dining area and main cabin lounge. Created in Owen Sound in in 1908, by a Swedish artist, hand-carved wooden wall panels in the Men’s lounge depicted the international origins of passengers who sailed on Canadian Pacifi c’s ships. Various salons featured custom-built oak and mahogany cabinetry and the staircases boasted exquisite iron work. 18 19 LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION! The S.S. Keewatin served as a prominent location setting for “Murdoch Ahoy”, the seventh season premiere of the long- running period drama series Murdoch Mysteries, originally aired on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and produced by Shaftesbury Films. Filmed in early June 2013, the episode starred Yannick Bisson as William Murdoch, the character tasked with investigating threats made against the passenger ship’s owner. Additional cast members included Hélène Joy as Dr. Julia Ogden, Thomas Craig as Inspector Thomas Brackenreid, Jonny Harris as Constable George Crabtree and Georgina Reilly as Dr. Emily Grace. The fi lming also required roughly 100 extras, with many drawn from local communities. “I had no idea that so many steamships existed at the turn of the century, and that there’s literally none left but this one. That kind of blew my mind… we’re able to walk around in it and see it and… shoot on it. So much of it is still historically accurate.” Yannick Bisson, star of the CBC’s Murdoch Mysteries, The Midland Mirror, June 5, 2013 Murdoch Mysteries photos courtesy of Shaftesbury Studios. © 2013 Shaftesbury Murdoch VII Inc. The Keewatin Takes a Starring Role Bring Her on Home Shaftesbury has been making Murdoch Mysteries for over a decade. The television When I fi rst learned about the S.S. Keewatin in 2011, the ship’s unique place in series, which is based on the novels by Maureen Jennings, is set in Toronto and Canadian history fascinated me. When I found out that the ship was about to be Southern Ontario at the turn of the last century. One of the challenges of fi lming repatriated back to Canada, I knew this was a story that needed to be documented Murdoch is fi nding locations that are true to the time. So much of our physical and shared with all Canadians. history is gone. As arrangements were already being made to move the ship from Michigan back Seen all over the world, the cases that Detective Murdoch investigates take him to to Ontario there wasn’t enough time to secure broadcaster funding to produce the all manner of places - towns, the countryside – travelling on horse, bike, train and fi lm ahead of time. But I knew this moment in history was too important to miss. automobile. But in 2010, our characters had not travelled by ship. Supported by the team returning “the Kee”, I was fortunate enough to put together a team of writers, fi lmmakers and editors who were prepared, as I was, to work on To our delight, we discovered the Keewatin. A ship built at the time of the Titanic the project gratis in the hope of recouping our investment after the production sitting in dock in Port McNicoll. That she had been preserved was a result of the was complete. enormous efforts of so many. Several months of fi lming followed, including the perilous 600-mile journey So, we made our very own Titanic episode. Filming on the Keewatin, under the home. On a beautiful June day in 2012, the S.S. Keewatin’s homecoming to Port watchful eye of Eric Conroy (who in our episode plays the Captain), we were able to McNicoll was the highpoint of fi lming. Six months of post-production followed and shoot scenes that made the audiences believe that the ship was indeed travelling the completed one-hour fi lm was licensed to CBC Documentary Channel, where (though it never left dock). Like the Titanic, in our episode, there is an accident it ran in regular rotation for three years. While recouping only a portion of our and the ship sinks. Our wonderful visual effects team built a replica model and we investment, every one of us was proud to have been a part of the team that shared staged the sinking. All “fi lm magic”. this great moment in history. Rarely do we get opportunities to fi lm in or on such a magnifi cent location. And The S.S. Keewatin still has a special place in my heart and I marvel at the wonderful my hope is that we were able to bring to life a bit of the story of the Keewatin. And engineering and craftsmanship that went into building this beautiful ship. Every that Canadians and visitors from around the world, can take pride that this ship, an year, I come to visit “the Kee” and I’m impressed by the hard work of the volunteers important part of our global heritage has been saved – in all its glory. who continuously maintain and renovate the ship. Like them, it is my hope that “the Kee” will live on forever so that future generations can see, touch and feel the Visit the Keewatin often. Tell friends and family about her. She deserves this honour. magical history of the Keewatin. Christina Jennings John Fulford-Brown CEO - Shaftesbury Producer & Director 27 STEEL and STEAM Written by K. Corey Keeble, Royal Ontario Museum Curator Emeritus The RMS Titanic – and the linage of the SS Keewatin It is here that the story of the Titanic is interleaved with the history of Canada’s rail and maritime networks, principally in terms of the history of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), the transcontinental At the time of its sinking, the Titanic was the newest, largest, most luxurious passenger liner on railway it built from 1881 to 1885, and the CPR’s development, first of passenger steamship service the Atlantic. Until the fatal 11:40pm collision with an iceberg on the night of 14 April, 1912, the on the Great Lakes, and subsequently, a global transportation network of railways, shipping lines, air Titanic was also regarded as the safest – believed by many to be unsinkable.