THE MAPLE LEAF'S CANADIAN
HISTORY
By Gerald T Girvin
The Cobourg Regatta
The Twilight Years
The First Fatality
Excursions and Cargoes.
As has been stated, steamboats on the lakes ceded their
position as a prime mode of transportation to the railroads, and continued
successful business only on routes not paralleled by rail lines. One phase of
the steamboat business which continued to thrive was pleasure travel, especially
excursions and charter cruises. The new managers in 1859 decided to limit
cross-lake service to three trips per week, making the Maple Leaf available for
excursions and charters on four days of the week. George Darling advertised in
the newspapers that the Maple Leaf could be chartered at:
...very low rates. She will lie here... between trips, and may be
occasionally employed by parties. Schools and associations will find this a
capital opportunity to make excursions, and something that has never been
offered them before.101
During the ensuing summer, the plan was to prove highly successful, and an
active promotion of the excursion trade was to be continued into the following
seasons.
By far the busiest excursion event of every year had been the celebration for
the Fourth of July. Residents of the Canadian ports on Lake Ontario were always
eager to join their American friends in the celebration, and the Maple Leaf
delayed her trips to make calls at all the ports from Whitby east to Wellington
so that passengers could embark for the crossing to Rochester, usually arriving
at Charlotte at a late hour the night before the holiday. Special arrangements
were made to accommodate the hundreds of visitors on shore, since the Maple Leaf
always brought over far more passengers than could be berthed on board
overnight. On the holiday, it was customary for the Maple Leaf to make five
excursions out on the lake of about twenty miles each, always with a popular
band on board to provide music for singing and dancing. Trains usually arrived
at the Charlotte station from the city depot at frequent intervals, and it was
reported that up to 3000 people would engage in the gala activities on a typical
holiday.
The Canadians, who sometimes numbered up to 400 on a
crossing, were carried at half fare, and embarked their steamer for the Canada
shore late in the evening after the final excursion.102
Captain Schofield had spent most of his years on the lake in the role of purser,
working diligently for the comfort and contentment of his travelers. Hence as
captain and owner of the Maple Leaf, he took a special pleasure in joining in
with the festive activities of his passengers.
Among the most popular cruises from Rochester were the "moonlight excursions"
scheduled about once a week during the warm summer seasons. The Maple Leaf would
leave Charlotte about dusk, after the arrival of the train from the city. Cost
of the excursion, including round trip train fare, was usually 75 cents. A "good
band" was always on board "to enliven the party, and give an opportunity for
dancing." After some three hours spent cruising about on the waters of the open
lake, the Maple Leaf would head back to port where the excursionists
could board the train for return to the city depot about midnight.103
The Cobourg Regatta.
The Port of Cobourg had over the years earned the
reputation of being home to many well-known yachts, and each year hosted the
famous Cobourg Regatta, in which yachting enthusiasts from both shores of the
lake participated. The Regatta was always held in August, and the Maple Leaf
always ran special excursions during the event for visitors from Rochester, as
well as scheduled day trips out on the lake from Cobourg for Canadians and
Americans who had come to observe.
On the days of the regatta, the Maple Leaf
was usually under steam around the clock. Some excursions would leave Charlotte
as early as 6 A.M., so as to arrive at Cobourg by 10 A.M., permitting American
visitors to spend about seven or eight hours viewing the spectacle and reveling
in Canada before sailing for
home. It was not uncommon for the Maple Leaf to return to Charlotte in the wee
hours, just in time for the next day's enthusiasts to board the boat for another
trip.
Once at Cobourg, the Maple Leaf would make repeated excursions throughout the
day "on the lake, following the yachts in their course of sailing." Captain
Perkins' Cornet Band crossed with the Maple Leaf on each of her trips, and also
provided music for the Regatta while at Cobourg. The cost of the round trip
excursion was usually about two dollars, with "meals extra."
At the close of the Cobourg Regatta in 1860, we are told that "all returned in
the best possible feeling" and convened at Stutson' s Hotel in Charlotte to
express "their thanks to Captain Schofield for his kindness and gentlemanly
conduct." The Union and Advertiser added that:
...the compliment was
deserved, for
Capt. Schofield runs the Maple Leaf
so as to always please and accommodate the public.104
The Cobourg Regatta had always met with such success and public acclaim that in
1861 the Genesee Yacht Club decided to promote a similar fete at Charlotte. The
event was held
"on the lake, off the mouth of the Genesee River," and continued for two days in
mid-August. It was stated that:
...the Maple Leaf will be in tonight
from Cobourg, and is expected to
tow over half a dozen or more
yachts from that port.
The boat laid over at Charlotte for the two
days:
...to make excursions on the lake
that all who desire may go outside
and see the yachts on their trial of speed.
The Perkins Band was on board:
...to enliven the company, and all who paid half a dollar
for the trip over the waters ought to feel well repaid.105
One of the most exciting events of 1860 on Lake Ontario was the visit by Albert,
Prince of Wales, to Canada in September, with scheduled visits and celebrations
in several of the ports on the north shore. The Prince traveled from Kingston to
Toronto on the steamer Kingston, and the Maple Leaf scheduled two special
excursions from Rochester to meet the Royal entourage along the route. The first
trip went to Cobourg, where the Prince's visit was highlighted by a:
Grand Ball and display of Fireworks in the evening. The steamer will remain at
Cobourg until the
following morning. Passengers can remain on board the boat. Round trip deck fare
was two dollars, with meals and berth extra.
The Maple Leaf returned to Rochester the next morning, and "at a late hour" that
night left on a second excursion - this time for Port Hope and from that port
accompanying the Prince's steamer along to Toronto.106
In the 1850s, there was no port on the south shore of Lake Ontario between
Rochester and Niagara served by steamboat. The Maple Leaf was the first steamer
to pioneer service to some of these small ports for pleasure travel. Excursions were run at various times to Yates Landing, Oak Orchard and Troutburg.
In August 1859, about 250 persons were taken from Yates and Oak Orchard across
the lake to Bond Head, the port for Newcastle, for an eight hour cruise and
festive dinner on board Maple Leaf.
In August 1860, the Maple Leaf took another group from Yates
Landing, accompanied by the Medina Band, on an excursion to Queenston on the
Niagara River. On her return trip that evening, the wind shifted to the north,
driving a heavy sea against the south shore, and making it too risky to attempt
landing at the small unprotected dock at Yates. The Maple Leaf proceeded east to
the safety of the Genesee, "and had a rough trip." The excursionists returned
home by train.
Westbound excursions, which were most popular, were those made to the little
port of Troutburg, located on the lake shore about 25 miles west of the Genesee.
It was an ideal distance for a pleasant day's excursion from Charlotte, along
the shore past the little resorts which had developed west of the city. Captain
Perkins' Band was traditionally on board. At Troutburg, travelers could avail
themselves of the shade of the picnic grove, or the sunny sand of the beach.
Excursionists from some neighboring places such as Brockport, Holley, Clarkson,
Hamlin and Kendall would board Maple Leaf for afternoon cruises out on the lake.
Troutburg excursions were especially popular with groups from several lodges,
schools, and churches.107
Excursions eastward on the lake sometimes went to the old port of Pultneyville,
and on some occasions as far as Sodus Bay. For a Sodus excursion, it was
advertised that:
...there is an immense blackberry patch on the shore of the
Bay ... those who do not choose to pick berries may fish, row or sail upon the
Bay, or do what they please.... The fare will be very low ... only fifty cents from Charlotte to Sodus Bay and return.
108
When the Canada Fair was held each year in September, the Maple Leaf made
special excursions from the Canadian ports to whatever city was hosting the
festivity. When the Orangemen in Canada celebrated each year on July 12, the
Maple Leaf ran excursions. It was reported in 1860 that the steamer:
...took nearly one thousand to Port Hope from the ports east of that
place and many who desired to get
on board could not do so.
While the famous steamship Great Eastern was docked in New York City, Canadians
crossed on the Maple Leaf for special railroad trips from Rochester. Another
popular trip for north shore Canadians was an excursion on the Maple Leaf to
Niagara to see the celebrated Blondin perform on the tight rope high above
Niagara Falls. Excursions were made for Americans venturing to fish in cool
Canadian waters, and for Canadians from smaller ports who were curious to see
the fabled sights of Rochester, especially its beautiful parks and the falls of
the Genesee.
When the Maple Leaf carried an excursion of people from Syracuse between Oswego
and historic Sackets Harbor, the Union and Advertiser exclaimed:
...some malicious person set afloat a report at Oswego that the Maple Leaf ...
is the old Comet ... blown up in Oswego some time since.
What nonsense! The Maple Leaf... proved herself to be one of the staunchest
crafts that ever
floated the lake Claiming to have
some personal knowledge of the matter, we say that we would as soon be on board
the Maple Leaf in a storm as upon any boat on the lake.
The confusion undoubtedly stemmed from the fact that the Comet, which had blown
up in Oswego, was raised and taken to Kingston to be rebuilt in the same
shipyard beside the Maple Leaf But the Comet was, as previously stated, re-named
Mayflower.109
The Maple Leaf was not strictly a passenger vessel, but earned a good portion of
her revenue transporting freight across the lake between Rochester and the
Canadian ports. Rochester was noted for its flour mills, built at the three
falls on the Genesee, and exported much of it to Canada on the Maple Leaf We are
told that "she now carries Rochester flour to Cobourg and Port Hope on every
trip." In 1859 we are told that:
...the Maple Leaf took to Cobourg two hundred barrels of flour destined for
Montreal. This flour goes down by the Grand Trunk Railway
from Cobourg, and is taken from the dock at Charlotte to Montreal for thirty
cents per barrel.
As flour was shipped north, Canadian wheat was sent south to the Rochester
mills. It was not uncommon for the Maple Leaf to carry up to 2000 bags of wheat
on one trip, equal, we are told, to "four thousand bushels." New York State was
noted for its apples even then, and the fruit was a common item shipped in late
summer and fall. In early August of 1862, it was said that:
...the apples are of course not quite ripe, but the Canadians are anxious
to get the fruit and take them green.
Fruit trees were also carried north on the
Maple Leaf from Rochester area nurseries.
The cargo of the Maple Leaf was generally varied. One November manifest listed:
...seven hundred bushels of wheat,
twenty thousand feet of sash lumber,
fifty bundles of shingles, two hundred sheep, three horses, seven head of cattle ... and other goods too numerous
to mention.
Needless to say, the accompanying passenger list was small, limited to some 40
hardy souls. Shipments of livestock were typical southbound fare, consisting
mainly of sheep, hogs, cattle and a growing trade in horses. Nothing was ever
reported about any interaction of livestock and passengers, especially during
some of the more turbulent crossings of the lake.110
The Twilight Years.
The business climate of Lake Ontario did not improve substantially in the spring
of 1859 over the previous season. The American Steamboat Company, formed the
previous spring from the remains of the bankrupt American Line, was itself in
financial ruin, and in a court action lost six of its steamers to the new
Ontario Steamboat Company, founded by Captain H. N. Throop, with the remaining
three boats in a receivership. Two of the latter, the large "palace steamers
New
York and Northerner," lay idle at Ogdensburg, prompting the Union and
Advertiser to comment:
They will do well to sell the NEW YORK and NORTHERNER at half their cost, for it
is doubtful whether they can be made to pay running expenses on this lake. The
days of large side-wheel steamers has passed-by and gone.
The Canadian steamer Peerless, from the Toronto to Lewiston route, was also
idle, and it was suggested that she be sent down to the ocean since "she has
found no where a paying business."111
The Maple Leaf continued the tri-weekly service across the
lake and she did a little more profitable business than the shore lines. On July
14, she was required to cancel her trip from Charlotte "owing to a slight
failure in the machinery." On the following day, the scheduled moonlight
excursion was likewise canceled,
...as the repairs to the machinery of the vessel were not completed in time -
much to the regret of Captain Schofield and Mr. Darling.
The Maple Lea/was reported in good order a day later and left Charlotte for the
north shore about midnight. When about six miles out on the lake, however, she
suddenly broke her shaft, "and was obliged to put back, which she did, having
been absent about four hours. "It was estimated that the Maple Leaf would be laid
up for about ten days, and that some other steamer might be brought in to make
her trips.
The Maple Leaf was tied up at the Charlotte shipyard while a new shaft was being
forged in a Rochester foundry. On July 19, the steamer Boston arrived from
Ogdensburg to take the passengers and freight, which had accumulated since the
Maple Leal s accident. The Boston made several trips across the lake, but
probably not with the regularity of the Maple Leaf. Referring to the latter, it
was reported that:
...the suspension of navigation by this steamer has caused considerable
inconvenience to the public, and has enabled those doing business across the lake to realize the value of a
steam communication.
The installation of the new shaft was actually not completed until Monday,
August 1, and the Maple Leaf left late that night for the north shore. That the
efforts of the Rochester craftsmen were successful was borne out by a report a
few days later that:
...the Maple Leaf, since undergoing repairs, is making better time than ever,
and came over last night from Cobourg in less time that she ever made before.112
The First Fatality.
On the afternoon of Thursday, August 18, 1859, the Maple Leaf was to experience
her first loss of life and the only fatality ever recorded in her Lake Ontario
career. The Maple Leaf had left Port Hope on her way to Rochester.
The steamer
was half a mile out
from the pier, when two of the hands were drawing up a fender, standing on the
upper deck, abaft the wheel. The steamer was running in a beam sea, and probably
made a lurch,
when one of the hands, Alexander Thompson, a Cobourg native, was thrown
overboard. All efforts were made to render assistance. Captain Schofield
immediately ordered the engines reversed to bring the Maple Leaf to a stop.
A "jolly boat" was lowered, but Thompson sank within 20 feet of the boat and
never surfaced again. "A search for some time resulted in nothing, and the
steamer came on its way." This had been the first fatal accident ever recorded
on the cross-lake route since it was begun in 1834.113
In September of the same year, Maple Leaf
went to the rescue of the Canadian propeller Brantford, heavily laden with iron
ore on a voyage from Montreal to Hamilton. Between Colborne and Cobourg, a few
miles from the Canada shore, the "Brantford blew off a cylinder head," and
being disabled, drifted for some hours towards the shore. She was discovered
by the Maple Leaf,
...close to shore, three miles below Colborne. Captain Schofield immediately
went to the aid of the Brantford, and found her dragging anchors with a prospect
of soon going ashore. He took her in tow to Cobourg, some twenty miles distant,
and got her safely in.114
Since fall crossings were usually quite
stormy, and the hull of the Maple Leaf had not
had attention or inspection in some time, it was decided to take her to Port
Dalhousie in September 1859 to be placed in the floating dry dock operated
there by Alexander Muir.
Her hull was found to be in
excellent condition. A large force was put upon her, by which she has been recaulked and put in order for the
rough weather she may have to meet. The boat is doing a fair business.
The Maple Leaf was back in Rochester and ready to leave on her regular trips on
September 29.115 A few weeks later, an early November gale forced a "fleet" of
sailing vessels to take refuge in the Genesee harbor. When the wind "hauled to
the north-east" it made it impossible for them to get out of port.
The masters were anxious, owing to the lateness of the season, to be on the
way, so they applied to Capt. Schofield to tow them out, which he did yesterday
forenoon. In one tow, the Maple Leaf took seven vessels, all strung
together, with sails spread. It was a grand sight as they moved out of the
harbor and one by one cut lose from the tow, and twined their prows to the
westward and flew away over the bounding waves.116
The Maple Leaf returned from Cobourg at 11 P.M. on December 1, and tied up for
the winter.
Capt. Schofield informs us that he ... has made ninety jive trips over
the lake and back during the season. The boat has done a fair business
and served the public well. It is well that she should lay up.117
In the spring of 1860, it was announced that the Maple Leaf would continue the
tri-weekly service again the coming season and layover on the alternate days for
excursions and charters. Considerable work was done on her during the winter
lay-up.
A new piston has been supplied to the engine, and other repairs made to the
machinery to avoid accidents which might have occurred. This work has been done
by our townsmen, E. Burroughs, who can build anything he undertakes in the way
of machinery, and make it right the first time. The boat has been repainted and
looks as good as new.
The Maple Leaf was taken out for a trial trip Monday, March
26, "and her engine, with its repairs and improvements, worked admirably." That
night the Maple Leaf left for Cobourg at midnight, "the first boat out of port
this season." Throughout the spring and early summer, business was moderate,
with passengers and the usual freight making up the cargo.118
On July 9, the Maple Leaf could not return
immediately from Canada, because she was detained by the Canadian Inspector, "to
make the necessary examination required by the stringent laws of Canada." The
inspection involved:
her hull, engines, boilers,
and other matters pertaining to the safety of the passengers ... The result was
highly satisfactory. The inspector gave Captain Schofield a certificate that the
Maple Leaf was in first rate order, and safe in every particular.
This inspector evidently was not named Risley. After a day's delay, the Maple
Leaf headed for Rochester, but was delayed again when she:
fell in with the steamer Colonist,
in a disabled condition, having
broken a shaft, and towed her into Cobourg.
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