Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Feb 1, 2008 13:35:41 GMT -8
Not historic, not a BC Ferry, not a 'steamship', and, while it was a predecessor to the current Seaspan fleet, it wasn't one of them. So where to post about this minor member of BC's shipping history? Well, I guess if the Spirits can be historic, so can the Trailer Princess. At least it's old and gone. Built 1944 for the U.S. Navy, rebuilt for CP in 1966. From the Vancouver Sun, Jan. 25, 1986.... Ferry move cuts 19 jobsCP Rail is scrapping its trailer ferry Trailer Princess, throwing 19 men out of work, the company confirmed Friday. Crew members aboard the vessel met Friday with Ed Moule, CP Rail's director of coastal marine operations, who told them the vessel's operating certificate would not be renewed after it expires in June. CP Rail spokesman Don Bower confirmed in a telephone interview that the 42 year old vessel, a former U.S. Navy landing craft that was converted to carry rail cars and drop trailers in 1966, will be scrapped. "It's worn out," he added. "It's come to the end of its useful economic life." Bower said the Trailer Princess, which has a capacity of 28 drop trailers, has not carried rail cars for several years. He said taking it out of commission will not affect CP Rail's nightly rail car and trailer service to Vancouver Island from downtown Vancouver.
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Post by WettCoast on Feb 1, 2008 14:36:56 GMT -8
This is an interesting item, Neil. The Trailer Princess was, I believe, a model of sorts, for newer vessels that came along, such as the Carrier Princess.
BTW, this item would probably fit better in an existing thread, or possibly a new one located somewhere in the "In their Wake - BC's Historic Ships" section.
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Post by Retrovision on Feb 1, 2008 14:53:46 GMT -8
Great angle, Neil, thanks for that. I'd argue that she's quite historic, not just by how long ago the photograph was taken let alone the massively changed landscape today where she's sitting (perpendicular to where the CR's Open House was held and missing numerous landmarks including Canada Place in the background), but more to the point the historical shift in the transportation of intermodal traffic that she represented for the C.P.R., the first of her kind in our waters other than Yorke & Sons pioneering efforts that came very soon before and were were contracted and chartered by the C.P.R. anyways, taking the place of former tug and barge services and, as Harry Tyson - Manager of the B.C. Coast Service until 1973 - predicted with this venture, a successful glimpse at what would be the standard in intermodal transportation to the island through today and the foreseeable future.
From "The Princess Story - A Century and a Half of West Coast Shipping" (Published 1974) by Norman R. Hacking and W. Kaye Lamb, starting on Page 319...
And starting on Page 328, showing how historic the foot in the door of Intermodal ferrying the Trailer Princess was for the C.P.R....
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Feb 2, 2008 12:10:19 GMT -8
. From the Vancouver Sun, Jan. 25, 1986.... Ferry move cuts 19 jobsCP Rail is scrapping its trailer ferry Trailer Princess, throwing 19 men out of work, the company confirmed Friday. Crew members aboard the vessel met Friday with Ed Moule, CP Rail's director of coastal marine operations, who told them the vessel's operating certificate would not be renewed after it expires in June. CP Rail spokesman Don Bower confirmed in a telephone interview that the 42 year old vessel, a former U.S. Navy landing craft that was converted to carry rail cars and drop trailers in 1966, will be scrapped. "It's worn out," he added. "It's come to the end of its useful economic life." Bower said the Trailer Princess, which has a capacity of 28 drop trailers, has not carried rail cars for several years. He said taking it out of commission will not affect CP Rail's nightly rail car and trailer service to Vancouver Island from downtown Vancouver. postscript: Although this 1986 article said the Trailer Princess was to be scrapped, I see she is still on the Transport Canada Registry, owned by Helifor Canada, a helicopter logging and heavy lift company. Their website has a number of videos, but the 'Princess isn't in them.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Oct 29, 2011 11:12:17 GMT -8
Here's a new thread for retired working-freight such as CP's Trailer Princess.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Nov 22, 2012 21:42:31 GMT -8
A few quick views of Trailer Princess, as a heli-logging barge camp, in this Rick Mercer Report video from 2010:
Just near the beginning of the video.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Dec 18, 2013 21:43:50 GMT -8
Pursuant to Mr Horn's post of a year ago on ex-CPR Trailer Princess...
Page 29 of the December '13 issue of Western Mariner has a small photo of this vessel, now owned by Helifor, which makes it apparent that the superstructure has been removed and replaced with housing and other structures. The caption describes her as a 'camp barge'. Interesting that Transport Canada still has her powered, at 1800 hp, with a service speed of 10 knots. Anyone know what protocol TC goes by for keeping their information current?
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Post by Low Light Mike on Dec 19, 2013 9:00:59 GMT -8
Pursuant to Mr Horn's post of a year ago on ex-CPR Trailer Princess...
Page 29 of the December '13 issue of Western Mariner has a small photo of this vessel, now owned by Helifor, which makes it apparent that the superstructure has been removed and replaced with housing and other structures. I noticed the same thing in the magazine, and I spent a bit of time staring at the small photo and trying to envision the old Trailer Princess.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Dec 19, 2013 9:46:57 GMT -8
Pursuant to Mr Horn's post of a year ago on ex-CPR Trailer Princess...
Page 29 of the December '13 issue of Western Mariner has a small photo of this vessel, now owned by Helifor, which makes it apparent that the superstructure has been removed and replaced with housing and other structures. I noticed the same thing in the magazine, and I spent a bit of time staring at the small photo and trying to envision the old Trailer Princess. If you look at the photo in the first post in this thread, you can make out that in WM's shot, the end with the orange helicopter would have been the bow. It is hard to visualize much else, stripped as she is.
I believe the Trailer Princess, built 1944, might be the oldest vehicle ferry in BC which is still in use in some form.
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Post by hullnumbers on Feb 7, 2015 12:20:17 GMT -8
Here's some interesting finds www.navsource.org/archives/10/19/1910.htmDown at the bottom there are two pictures of the former Trailer Princess for Helifor. Then there's this page en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Coronis_(ARL-10)Such a find XD There's more on this ship if you type in her former names LST 1033 or USS Coronis. Also a note is that most webpages say she was bought for Helifor after war time use in 1965. This is wrong. There's no mention of her joining British Columbia Coastal Steamships. On Wikipedia I made that quick correction. She must have been a steamship from 1944 to 1966 before being transformed into a Motor Vessel for CPR. Also in the first post of this thread (By Neil) the article said the Trailer Princess was to be scrapped but she never was since Flugels find of Rick Mercer Report video from 2010. She must have been sold to Helifor in 1986. Which makes me wonder, when was Helifor formed.
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Post by hullnumbers on Feb 7, 2015 16:22:20 GMT -8
Update...
Found when Helifor was formed. It was 1978. So the Trailer Princess was bought by Helifor. As for the Steamship (SS) to Motor Vessel (MV) transformation, this did happen when BCCS took possession before the ferry was put in service.
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Post by hullnumbers on Feb 7, 2015 16:54:55 GMT -8
Update... Found when Helifor was formed. It was 1978. So the Trailer Princess was bought by Helifor. As for the Steamship (SS) to Motor Vessel (MV) transformation, this did happen when BCCS took possession before the ferry was put in service. Sorry, forget what I said on the engine part, I don't even know if it was changed to MV from SS so for now I'm going to leave it unknown.
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Post by hullnumbers on Feb 12, 2015 18:29:31 GMT -8
Did a cool down and relooked at the info carefully. I found the Trailer Princess was diesel when built as LST- 1003 during WW2. This would have made her a Motor Vessel, but since she was built for the United States Navy she was a USS (United States Ship). Here is also another find I came across in my search. forms.otc-cta.gc.ca/sins-cvis/navire-ship_eng.cfm?ShipID=327072The only question now is, is how many rail Cars, passenger cars and passengers did she carry? Did she even carry cars and passengers before the 1974 change? Does anyone know?
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Aug 15, 2017 11:42:44 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Mar 11, 2022 7:59:25 GMT -8
The old CPR Trailer Princess is making the news headlines right now as she takes on water in Duncan Bay, just north of Campbell River. This has been turning into a fight to prevent a fairly significant environmental event, as crews work to pump thousands of litres of fuel off the vessel. And no, the environment inside the ship is deemed too unsafe for crew to enter, and so efforts have turned to capture the fuel from outside the hull..:: If I’m not mistaken, there’s a rather large collection of vessels at Duncan Bay now? The North Island Princess, ex Coast Guard Ice Breaker, ex Royal City Princess, ex Mill Bay ferry, to name a few… www.campbellrivermirror.com/news/large-barge-sinking-in-campbell-river/?fbclid=IwAR15PUWcMgKUqUMZfqoePxOPUR0onHbpvmTQ4giXLCiEX7m_PwI4rWXDGcc
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Post by hullnumbers on Sept 23, 2022 12:40:35 GMT -8
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