! Steam Navigation on the Saint John River, New Brunswick, Canada

 The first steamboat in the province was built at Portland, Saint John, launched in April, 1816. It was named General Smyth. At first it made one trip to Fredericton and back in a week. The second steamer followed in 1825. Gradually, the river traffic increased until, before the era of railways it became very great. Thus in 1851, fifty thousand people were carried from Saint John to Fredericton. A typical early riverboat with paddle wheel propulsion was the Aberdeen. They replaced and supplanted the early canoes, keel and long boats, schooners and woodboats that plied the lower river and its tributaries before the steamboat era. (Note: models used for pictures of the General Smyth and the Aberdeen are in Fredericton Public Library)

 In 1842 a steamer, the Reindeer , was launched at Fredericton on the (St. John) river. It was the first vessel in the world to be propelled by a compound steam engine, i.e., one in which high and low pressure steam were combined. Both the vessel and her engine were designed by a young man of genius. Benjamin Tibbits. a native of Queens county (NB). This invention preceded the first application of the principle in Europe by about three years.

 In 1846 the Legislature of the province made a record of Tibbits' important work. and granted him 100 pounds.

 The Reindeer was rebuilt as the Antelope and did service for many years; then the engine was used in a tug-boat: In all the original engine operated for more than fifty years. and was at last scrapped and broken up in a foundry.

River traffuc began to decline when the railways appeared and at the present day it is very small indeed. The price of fuel has even reduced pleasure boat traffic

 The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada have placed a bronze tablet in honour of Tibbits on the Marine Building, Prince William Street, Saint John. * The above is from: Webster, Historical Guide to New Brunswick *

 Notes: Tibbits is buried at Scotchtown on the Grand Lake, NB.

 Riverboat service came to an end in the 1940's during World War II. By that time the railways dominated the intraprovincial traffic. The river valley railway was abandoned in the mid 1980's. The steamboat service lasted about 130 years. The railway that replaced it have now been abandoned. They were available for about 60 years. The traffic is now all by motor vehicles on the highways. The early settlement pattern relied on the river for transport. The current pattern relies on the roads.

^ [NUNET] * [ About the REINDEER by Benjamin Tibbits ] * [Topics: Historical, Transportation]

End to date: 051225, ams