City of Medicine Hat (sternwheeler)

Career (Canada)
Name:	City of Medicine Hat
Launched:	June 04, 1907
In service:	1907-1908
Fate:	Wrecked
General characteristics
Length:	130 ft (39.6 m)
Beam:	26 ft (7.9 m)
Speed:	12 knots

The City of Medicine Hat was a paddle steamer sternwheeler that worked on the Saskatchewan River in Medicine Hat, AB and Saskatchewan, Canada from 1907 until its final and ill-fated voyage in June, 1908.

History

Designed by her Captain, Horatio Hamilton Ross, the City of Medicine Hat was built over the winter of 1906/07. Ross and his investors raised $28,000 in order to construct the ship, which was outfitted with oak and brass, an ornate music box, and a number of amenities. The ship was christened and launched in the spring of 1907 and embarked on pleasure cruises and shipping ventures throughout the season.

Captain Horatio Hamilton Ross

The City of Medicine Hat was the third sternwheeler built by Scottish nobleman Horatio Hamilton Ross. Ross came to Canada in the late 19th century and established a steam-shipping empire across the prairies.

Final Voyage

In the spring of 1908, Ross decided to sail the City of Medicine Hat from Medicine Hat, AB to Winnipeg, MB, with a number of friends and crew onboard. Having reached the small community of Saskatoon, SK on June 7, Ross attempted to navigate the ship safely through the rail bridges that spanned a South Saskatchewan River in full spring flood. Unfortunately, the high water concealed telegraph wires just beneath the surface, which became entangled in the ship's rudder, rendering the steering the vessel impossible. The ship foundered and struck the south-most pier of the newly constructed Traffic Bridge. The crew and passengers were able to escape the sinking ship and no casualties were reported. However, the City of Medicine Hat was ruled a total loss.

Archeological Project

Anchor on display near the Traffic Bridge

In 2006, Saskatoon Fire and Protective Services divers discovered a large kedge anchor during a routine training dive. The anchor, presumed to be from the City of Medicine Hat due to its exact likeness to the ship's anchors seen in photographs, was conserved and is now on display beneath the Traffic Bridge at River Landing in Saskatoon, SK.

This discovery led to a full-scale, five-day underwater excavation, which was conducted from September 8 to 12, 2008. A number of artifacts were uncovered from the water.

Documentary

A film crew consisting of director Leanne Schinkel, producer Nils Sorensen, and editor Corby Evenson recorded the entire excavation for a feature-length documentary entitled The Last Steamship: The Search for the SS City of Medicine Hat. The film was released on September 3, 2010.

Further reading

Barris, Theodore (1977). Fire Canoe: Prairie Steamboat Days Revisited. McClelland and Stewart. ISBN 0771010257 Peel, Bruce Braden (1972). Steamboats on the Saskatchewan. Western Producer. ISBN 0919306314

External links

• The Last Steamship: The Search for the SS City of Medicine Hat, Documentary website
• The (Second) Golden Era of Steamboats on the South Saskatchewan, Esplanade Archives Times Interactive Exhibitions