Those Magnificent Riverboats by Eden Monroe

 

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The age of riverboats began in the Eastern Canadian province of New Brunswick in the early 1800’s. Heretofore relying on sail or small personal crafts such as canoes, dugouts or rowboats, the steamboat era made for an elegant chapter in the province’s history.

It even found its way into the romantic suspense novel, Bound for Somewhere, Book One of The Kavenaghs (1870-1879):

“The woman, along with two hundred other passengers, made her way up the gangplank to board the stern-wheeler, The Bluebird, for the trip up the St. John River. It was a sultry August morning, with a mere wisp of a breeze to stir the air. It promised to get warmer as the day wore on, and they got further inland. Being on the water would be much more pleasant than travelling upcountry over rough dusty roads.

And then with a great bellow of steam they were on their way and a cheer went up from the crowd at the rail. Such was the jubilant mood of those onboard as they chugged out into the river headed toward Washademoak Lake. It was not a true lake at all, but a widening of the Canaan River the captain pointed out.

To say the scenery was breathtaking would be an understatement. The water was the deep blue of the finest aquamarine, a brilliance matched only by the sky above. Trees, of every shade of green stood proudly at shoreline, farmlands rolling back from the water’s edge every mile or so. She thought about being cooped up in that stuffy old stagecoach on her trip to St. John. This was absolutely heavenly compared to that.

        Luxury and comfort were at the passenger’s fingertips everywhere you looked. This was the way to travel! She joined a tour of the ship when it was offered, and passengers were treated to a seemingly never-ending abundance of sophistication. From the lushly carpeted dining room to the one hundred and fifty foot grand saloon with its marble topped tables and generously carpeted chairs for maximum comfort, the elegance was awe-inspiring. That included Victorian-influenced décor of tassels and fringes, even sofas were spared no detail of grand style. There was even an exquisite circular stairway, and she felt like a queen when she descended to the group that had gathered below to admire its unique construction.

        For lunch she was able to secure a coveted seat in the dining quarters on the saloon deck. There she could not only continue to appreciate unparalleled scenery and the clean fragrance of the river, but enjoy a mouthwatering luncheon menu as well.

        And at the end of it all awaited Garrett. This time she would not let him walk away. She would make it work.”

Riverboats were of course before my time, but my Great Uncle Walter who lived to be a hundred and six and a half, remembered them well. For many years he operated a general store at a place called The Narrows (now Cambridge-Narrows), and his supplies were delivered by riverboat on the Washademoak Lake. Actually a worldwide phenomenon, riverboats also became hugely popular with tourists in the province, and indeed those boats did more than carry passengers on idyllic cruises to various destinations along the picturesque waterways of New Brunswick. They also provided freight service, delivering goods to farmers and shopkeepers upriver, and carrying farmers’ wares to market back downriver.

    These boats plied several New Brunswick rivers during their heyday, including the Kennebecasis River.

The Kennebecasis River on a windy day.

        A rise in rail travel rang the death knell for the days of the riverboat in New Brunswick, the last of its kind, the SS Majestic, decommissioned in 1942. Some of those splendid old vessels met a difficult end, several destroyed by fire or other mishaps, while others just ran the course and were finished. Many became dance halls. To this day the rusted hull of the SS Majestic lies in shallow waters in Darlings Lake, Nauwigewauk, Kings County. It was towed to the area to become one of those popular riverboat dance halls, but was unfortunately the victim of a hurricane in 1946. An inglorious end indeed for such a distinguished piece of history.

        At one time the Majestic and her illustrious counterparts ruled New Brunswick waters, and stately hotels were erected nearby to accommodate their legions of passengers. The Washademoak Lodge and the Cambridge Hotel on the Washademoak Lake are both long gone now, as are most of the others. But the years have been kind to the Eveleigh Hotel (now Evandale Resort & Marina), still standing in all its Victorian charm on the beautiful St. John Rover at Evandale. It truly is a wonderful step back in time, with most of the old steamboat wharves still in place to remind us of those halcyon days.

        While there are those who currently conduct aquatic tours, and certainly countless pleasure craft enjoy the incomparable scenery along New Brunswick rivers, the years of those magnificent old riverboats (seventy-three in all over the years) was truly a high point in our history.

        And there is plenty of colourful history, much of it kept by those who were involved in this seasonal industry (May thru October). According to kingstonnb.ca/steamboat-stories, the following is one of those lively accounts:

         “This is a story by steamboat captain and historian Capt. Donald F. Taylor based on letters from Captain Fred Mabee.

        The captain and officers of the steamboat usually stayed the full season. In many cases the entire crew not only stayed the entire season but returned year after year.

        Occasionally did real illness necessitate that a person go ashore. Once such occasion arose on the Hampstead.

        Captain Maybee writes:

       ‘ It was mid summer 1896. The stewardess became quite ill during the night while the steamer was at Wickham and there was no time to get a girl even for a waitress on such short notice.

        ‘It so happened that our fireman had some restaurant experience and offered to help if a deck hand could assist him in maintaining the steam at its usual pressure. Very soon after leaving Saint John the fireman came to the wheelhouse and told me that there was a young lady on board that would make the trip up just to help out. “Very well”, said I, “you may tell her to go to work.”

        ‘The girl seemed to do very well. I told her that she could occupy the room used by the stewardess. In the middle of the night I was awakened by someone running around and around the saloon deck. It really sounded like two people having a race. After they went by my door twice I thought that I had better see what was going on. I opened my door and lo and behold the fireman was chasing the new table girl around the saloon deck outside the cabin in the moonlight. It was quite evident that both were nearly naked.

        ‘I shouted and spoke quite sharply to them. I told them that we were not going to have such antics going on and that a lot of unnecessary noise when others were trying to sleep must stop immediately. The turmoil was over and the performers disappeared very quickly and quietly….”

        For sure those were gentler times (usually), unhurried compared to how we are slaves to unrelenting punctuality today. Says cbc.ca/news/Canada/new-brunswick/roadside-history-ss-majestic:

        “While travel time was relatively quick on the steamship, a May 1946 Evening Times Glove interview with the Majestic’s final captain, M. C. McMurtry, illustrates how pastoral the line once was.

        “We were never in a hurry, and many times went back for folks who arrived late,” said McMurtry.

        “We even went back for the occasional hat which had blown overboard. We just considered that common courtesy, and usually recovered the hat before it got too wet.”