Russel Brothers Limited OWEN SOUND, ONTARIO Steelcraft Boat Builders
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Anglo Duchess / Duchess V
Kingfish I
Hull #1085, Design 524. Steel diesel tug [C.198470] built by Russel Bros., Owen Sound, Ontario for Dryden pulp & Paper Co., Ltd., Fort William, and launched as a] Anglo Duchess 1955 � 1984; 48�; 24 g.t., acquired by Waterman Services Ltd., and brought to Toronto; renamed Duchess V 1984 � 19--. Lloyd Scott established Waterman�s Services (Scott) Ltd. In 1957. renamed King Fish 1. RBF Notes: as Duchess V, sank dockside in Toronto in 1992 due to frozen seacock. Raised same year. Transport -Canada List 2002: Built by Russel-Hipwell Engine Co., Owen Sound, Ont. GAO Notes: Owned by McKeil under a numbered company; operated by King Fish Productions & Events Ltd., Hamilton. April 2007: GAO notes ownership change:
General Statistics
Vessel Type TUG - OTHER Gross Tonnage 24.16 t
Net Tonnage 10.54 t Construction Type CLINKER
Ship Length 14.60 m Construction Material STEEL
Ship Breadth 3.96 m Ship Depth 1.62 m
Engine Description DIESEL Number of Engines 1
Propulsion Type SELF-PROPELLED Speed (knots) 10.0
Propulsion Method SINGLE SCREW Propulsion Power 500
Unit of Power BRAKE HORSEPOWER
Owner Name HEDDLE MARINE SERVICE INC.
Address 208 HILLYARD ST.
HAMILTON
ONTARIO
CANADA
L8L 6B6
This small tug was built in 1955 by Russel Brothers Limited of Owen Sound, ON as the Anglo Duchess for Dryden Pulp & Paper. In 1984 she was purchased by Waterman�s Services and renamed Duchess V. In the late 1990s, McKeil Marine of Hamilton, ON acquired the tug and renamed her as the King Fish I. She was operated by King Fish Productions & Events, and used to push the party barge Island Sauvage. The work did not last long, and the King Fish I was eventually sold to Heddle Marine Service, where she has been used for small jobs around Heddle�s shipyard in Hamilton.
Type: Single Screw Tugboat
Year Built: 1955
Builder: Russel Bros. Ltd., Owen Sound, ON
Horsepower: 500 bhp
Length: 47' 09?
Breadth: 12' 09?
Depth: 5' 03?
Port of Registry: Toronto, ON.
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50' Diesel Harbour Tug. Design 524 Blueprints. May 20, 1955. |
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| Dryden Paper Co. Ltd. Wages Nov. 1, 1953. Courtesy Dave Debney.
Dave Debney comments (7 Dec 2014): "A bunch of us from work that are all retired have been going for coffee every Wednesday morning for the last six years. A couple of weeks ago, we somehow got started on a discussion of where our tugboats from the Pulp and Paper Mill in Dryden ended up. Hauling log booms on the lake and river had ended in 1981. We knew most had been sold between 1981 and 1984 but had no idea where they went or what became of them. There were five tugs, the Anglo Duchess, Dryden 2, Dryden 3, Dryden 4 and the Pine Bay. The Duchess was the largest and actually replaced the three Dryden tugs for hauling booms on the lake. Dryden 2, 3 and 4 were mainly used on the river after Duchess's arrival. Pine Bay, which no one seems to have any information on, now sits on the river bank in front of the mill as a monument." source: http://forum.trailersailor.com/post.php?id=1398228
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Photo courtesy Robert Cox.
Toronto, May 18, 1984. Mac Mackay photo.
SV notes: Here is a Bill Moran photo of Duchess V, taken from the Cherry Street bridge in Toronto. This photo was taken in 1992, the same day as the similar Colinette shot.
Duchess V is the ex Anglo Duchess, now King Fish I.
National Post, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 15 Dec 1998, Tue Page 23
Roger, Cap. Enjoy your retirement, fall ahead
Joe Fiorito City Columnist
There's hard work in the harbour tonight. The Federal Vibeke, a saltie of Norwegian registry, is riding high in the water. She's just unloaded a belly full of rolled steel; she's ready to cast off. And the Chalothorn Naree is due soon, with a cargo of steel beam.
In a trailer down on the docks, Lloyd Scott makes a cup of coffee. With his brother Mel, he runs Waterman's Towing. He's captain of the tugboat Duchess V. Lloyd Scott shakes his head and wonders how steel from halfway around the world can possibly be cheaper than steel from Hamilton. The question is rhetorical. But if he wants an answer, hell have plenty of time to find one. After 41 years as a tugboat captain, Lloyd's retiring at the end of the season. The Vibeke and the Naree are among the last few boats he'll push.
Lloyd's forebears sailed banking schooners out of Fortune Bay, Newfoundland. The connection to the Rock is strong; the Scott brothers have always hired men from Fortune Bay to work with them on the docks. "You can't go down there" Lloyd jerks a thumb toward the city "and find a man who knows how to tie a line." Just then, the radio crackles. Duchess, this is the Vibeke, we're ready to go when you are. "Roger, Cap. We're on our way." Lloyd rinses his cup and heads for the Duchess.
At one time, Waterman's had so many tugs, the company was known as Scott's Navy. They used to push upwards of 1,200 boats a season. With the decline of the Seaway, they're lucky to see 60.
The sky is a cherry smear on the horizon when Lloyd jumps aboard the Duchess. He's built like a tug himself: small and strong, wide abeam, and agile. He ducks below decks and starts the engine. There is a reluctant cough, a roar and then a steady throb that rises from the engine room and runs up my heels. Lloyd takes the shudder of power in stride. It's new to me, yikes.
The Duchess is nimble and trim, girdled with fat black tires. She noses up to the Vibeke the way a child presses against the window of a candy store : with an apparent eagerness. On the dock, three of the four bow lines holding the Vibeke fast have been cast away. A crackle of radio: We've singled up, Duchess. "Roger, Vibeke." Okay, Duchess, we're letting go. "Ah, roger, Cap." Half ahead now, Duchess. "Roger, Cap, half ahead."
The Vibeke inches forward. The channel water is deep green, and it roils in the half light as the Duchess strains; half ahead, when you're powered by 700 horses, is a lot of power. A plume of water sprays up behind the tug. Full ahead now, Duchess. "Roger, full ahead." And the Vibeke begins to make her turn in the channel. It is achingly slow, and mighty and majestic, and it takes forever. If you want to know what it feels like, stand behind your house and rest your forehead gently against the brick. Push slowly now. Stop pushing when your house is on the other side of the street. Ease up, Duchess. "It's all rubber, Cap. I'm just touching you now." Okay, gentlemen, we've got her. The best to you and yours for the holidays. "Merry Christmas, Cap."
Across the harbour, the city stands glittering in a pool of its own reflection. There is the smell of diesel in the air. Lloyd watches the Vibeke slip off into the night. This is the moment he'll miss. It's the end of the season. Red skies at night, Captain Scott. The Seaway is now closed; Lloyd Scott retires officially as soon as he winterizes the Duchess. His brother Mel will run Waterman's for a few more years until he, too, retires.
GAO Notes: Toronto Sun. March 6, 1992.
Enlarge to 2064 pixels |
Toronto Star. March 10, 1992.
Article courtesy Paul Capel. Click to Enlarge.
TUG RAISED FROM CHANNEL AFTER MYSTERY SINKING.
The Duchess V, a 40 ton tug that sank in Toronto harbor's ship channel near the Cherry St. bridge last week, is raised from the bottom by a barge crane belonging to Waterman's Services (Scott) Ltd. The cause of the sinking is not known. No one was injured in the accident. Paul Capel collection.
GAO Notes: Owned by McKeil under a numbered company;
operated by King Fish Productions & Events Ltd., Hamilton.
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GAO Notes: Kingfish 1 and Island Sauvage June 17, 2000.
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KING FISH I at Toronto in August 2000. Photo by Rene Beauchamp.
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King Fish I on the dock in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Apr 10/07. Photo by Paul Beesley.
source: http://www.shipspotting.com/gallery/photo.php?lid=1249643
Photos courtesy Tim Mckeil (April 26, 2018). The two closer views I have are April 1, 2011, about 1540 hours, and the one from farther off is from April 20, 2011, about 1120 hours.
Photo by Ted Wilush. Donnie Smith comments (April 25, 2018): "Heddle Marine. Pr 14 Hamilton, Wolf Islander in the background. 2015 that is the last time the Wolf Islander was at Heddle Marine for TC 5 year inspection. Tim McKeil adds..."That shot is alongside the barge Black Carrier with its head approximately north, at Pier 15 in Hamilton. The Black Carrier is a barge of about 200 by 45 feet that Evans McKeil purchased in about 1975. It used to be a derrick barge that was used during the war to load machinery onto ships, as I was told. It was mainly riveted construction. It is now spudded in, end to the dock, with a heavy ramp. Makes extra dock space for Heddle.
In the background, the red brick building is the old Case Tractor office at 208 Hillyard St. in Hamilton.
McKeil Marine had their head office there from about 1989 to 2017.
The pic might be about 10 years old. Not sure the red paint has been refreshed.
There used to be a large brick warehouse building on the dock that would be visible if it were still there.
It came down around 2007."
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Photos from Robert Cox.
King Fish 1 in Hamilton Ontario, photo by Robert Cox, October 27, 2019. Matthew Carlson sends over an email comment from Heddle Marine (Oct. 28, 2019): "Heddle Shipyards still owns and operates the King Fish I. We use it routinely at our Hamilton facility to move boats and barges around the yard. In addition to being the sales manager at Heddle I am also a tug captain, I have run the King Fish many times and she is a great little boat. Cheers, Ted."
King Fish I - escorting Theodore Too into Hamilton Harbour, July 2021.
Photos by Bobby Davidson & Janey Anderson
For more Russel exhibits visit Owen Sound Marine & Rail Museum 1165 1st Ave West, Owen Sound, ON N4K 4K8
(519) 371-3333  http://marinerail.com |
