Boatnerd Discussion Forum

Imperial Sarnia in July of 1968

Sad to see her go.I always took a look for her when crossing the skyway. I sailed on her in 1970 and 71 as second and third mate. Bert Knight was skipper and Capts Nate Smith and Wilf Maheu where aboard. Yes I still remember Rollie as well as Bobby Caudle in the galley who I still see on occasion as he lives in Forest. Bobby By the way has a basement full of great lakes memorabilia a great collection of memories. Sarnia is the last to go of a great fleet.

mac: i remember rollie quite well. i was on watch with him on the imperial london in 1958.

I don't believe she has had fuel aboard for more than 20 years. I think the news photo mentions that 1989 was the last year she was actually used.

[quote="Shipwatcher1"]Was this tanker used for fuel storage until recently or has it been in mothballs for sometime now?[/quote]

Mothballed for quite some time by now.

I noticed the stern & the stack look a lot like a T-2 or a T-3, I wonder if they used a similar design because some of the structural pieces back aft look the same.

Was this tanker used for fuel storage until recently or has it been in mothballs for sometime now?

I'm saddened to see the last of an era go!
I grew up around these Imperial vessels, my father sailed on them. Most called him "Scotty"
My opportunity to sail on the Imperial Bedford came when I was right out of high school, what an experience! I'm still grateful to the crew of the Bedford.
I remember meeting one of the Sarnia's last Captains, a regular around Sarnia, Nate Smith was his name if I remember. The bosun mentioned was Rollie, Roland Irving. He was a dear friend of my dad's. My father passed away in 2003.
As a kid growing up I remember going down to the ships. The Imperial fleet.
It was either go spend the day with my dad on the ship or to pick up friends of my dads. He spent most of his time on the Imperial St.Clair.
Once again I was sad to see the Bedford go because I had the experience of a lifetime. When the St.Clair went, it was a feeling of loss because It was a link to my childhood anytime the ship was in Sarnia you knew dad was home. Now when I travel past Hamilton, I won't be able to see one of the fleet my dad sailed on.

Tow is currently delayed below Lock 1 since late last night. Lead tug Vigilant I was reported to have steering gear issues. Most recent ETD is 1700 for Lock 1.

The Imperial Sarnia is not remembered fondly along the St. Lawrence thanks to her grounding on Whaleback Shoal west of Brockville on April 15, 1974. While the estimated 1000 barrels of oil which escaped into the river was largely contained within the general area, an oil spill did move down river fouling the shoreline along its path.

Hope no one minds the anecdotes, but I recall another hair-raising event while I aboard the [b]Sarnia[/b]. We were on our way to Montreal from Sarnia and were downbound on Lake Erie. This was November and we had quite a storm literally pushing us eastwards toward the canal. While approaching the canal entrance, the canal control people told us to drop anchor outside the Port Colbourne piers until the [b]Canadian Century[/b] was able to make its way out into Lake Erie. So, in compliance, we dropped the hook, but quickly regretted it! In combination with the speed we were travelling and the clay bottom in the area, our port anchor grabbed the bottom and dug straight in. In short order, the anchor chain paid out and the bow stopped hard, but the [b]Sarnia[/b] didn't. Her stern swung around to starboard like a rocket and the boat started rolling over! If it weren't for the quick thinking of our bosun ([i]Rollie, I believe was his name[/i]), we'd have turned turtle right then and there, for sure, probably resulting in the deaths of all aboard. At the time, I was in my cabin on the starboard side. I watched all this thru the porthole in my cabin. Needless to say, it was quite unnerving to watch the city lights of Port Colbourne go straight up into the air! What saved the day, was that Rollie had grabbed a huge mallet that was hanging on the forward anchor winch and gave the screw-down chain arresting system a good,hard whack, releasing the anchor chain, causing the chain to pay out amidst a mighty shower of sparks! The Sarnia immediately responded and came back upright as good as gold. Fortunately, nothing catastrophic took place, but I can tell you, everyone went about their work with considerable more thankfulness and minimal complaining, after that.

remember sarnia well. was on london in 58

I have fond memories of the Imperial Sarnia transiting the St. Clair River during the early to mid-1980s. The sight of a steam powered tanker exiting lower Lake Huron in a heavy fog is something that can defy words. This ship had an interesting history as it spent some time off the lakes during the 1950s before returning to the Inland Seas in 1965. I always like the style of the Imperial tankers built at Collingwood during the late 1940s. May particular favorite was the Imperial Collingwood following her rebuilding in 1969. The Imperial Sarnia shared a similar appearence to this ship although it had larger dimensions.

[quote="ashland69"]That's really too bad. I sailed aboard her as [b]Imperial Sarnia[/b] back in the Fall of 1969. I was a deckhand and had a lot of incredible experiences aboard her. One thing I recall, among numerous instances, was when we came out of Parry Sound, lightship, bound for Sarnia to load for Montreal - we ran headlong into a mini-hurricane out of the west southwest in the middle of Georgian Bay. The waves were so big, they towered a good ten or more feet over our main deck and swept us from bow to stern, with spray going in every direction when the wave hit the center castle! My roomy was an old salt off the ocean. He was so seasick he couldn't go near the galley or talk about food! [b]Imperial Sarnia[/b] was a good boat and a had good crew that Fall. One long and two short to her![/quote]
I can vouch for the mini hurricane in Georgian Bay, a friend of mind was sailing in July 1957, approaching the entrance to Cove Island for Georgian Bay, a tornado in the making but it died down, same thing on Lac St Pierre, he told me.

Aug 73 til we laid up around New Years Eve in Sarnia.

A buddy of mine sailed on the [b]Imperial Collingwood[/b] same time I was on the [b]Sarnia[/b]. When were you on the [b]London[/b]?

Another classic heads off..I sailed on the Imperial London and regarded the Sarnia as the "Queen of the Fleet".

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSzV2E0RF04[/youtube]


Sad Indeed.

That's really too bad. I sailed aboard her as [b]Imperial Sarnia[/b] back in the Fall of 1969. I was a deckhand and had a lot of incredible experiences aboard her. One thing I recall, among numerous instances, was when we came out of Parry Sound, lightship, bound for Sarnia to load for Montreal - we ran headlong into a mini-hurricane out of the west southwest in the middle of Georgian Bay. The waves were so big, they towered a good ten or more feet over our main deck and swept us from bow to stern, with spray going in every direction when the wave hit the center castle! My roomy was an old salt off the ocean. He was so seasick he couldn't go near the galley or talk about food! [b]Imperial Sarnia[/b] was a good boat and a had good crew that Fall. One long and two short to her!

Thought I'd give a heads up, the old Imperial Sarnia will be going to IMS for scrap, departing Hamilton September 24 according to information received from Provmar Fuels.