Russel Brothers Limited OWEN SOUND, ONTARIO Steelcraft Boat Builders
| Les Piles
Canadian List of Shipping 1956: Les Piles [C.177898] registered at Montreal; built at Owen Sound in 1947. 35'1 x 10'l x 4'3; 11 g.t.; 7 n.t.; 138 hp. Owned by The Minister of Public Works, Ottawa. Canadian List of Shipping 1970: Steel tug Les Piles [C.177898] registered at Montreal. Built at Owen Sound in 1947. 35'; 11 g.t. Canadian List of Ships 1997: Owned by Compagnie De Flottage Du St. Maurice Ltee. Trois Rivieres, Quebec. Transport Canada List 2003: Owned by Compagnie De Flottage Du St. Maurice Ltee. Trois Rivieres, Quebec. |
Yves Cloutier notes (Aug. 2018): The Piles, brand new in 1947. Rejean Boisvert photo.
YC notes: The Piles in 1991, Full steam ahead! Get of the way, ain't afraid of no logs!
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Rene Garceau comments (July 11, 2019): C'est le bateau Les Piles dans Grand-piles, Qc.
C'est un panier a recuperation des pitounnes (billes de bois de quatre pied) qui flottent sur la riviere St Maurice servant juste les fin semaine pour les usagers du st Maurice fut construit en 1995 a Grand-piles.
It's the boat Les Piles at Grand-piles, Qc.
This is a recovery basket of the pitounnes (four-Foot logs) that float on the st Maurice River serving just the weekend for the users of st Maurice River. It was built in 1995 in Grand-piles.
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The Piles in 1998
The Piles in 2003
The Piles side view
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Yves Cloutier notes: "The Piles (Les Piles) freshly painted in 2005. Taken at Grande Piles Quebec on July 27 2005. The boat formerly owned By the STMRD is still at the marina along with the Nikauba. Note the scratch on the side.... this was certainly made when the boat pulled itself into the water using the winch. To do this, the boat sits on a "slip" or sleep (2 pieces of boom on each side, most of the time covered with steel plate) the wire is passed under the boat in the middle of the slip, tied to a chain achored deep in the water. Working the winch will pull the boat into the water... depending of the angle of the slip you will get there slowly or give a good show! When I was working at Beaumont, it was possible to pull the boat out of the water, check the rudder or the propeller and go back in the water in about 30 minutes. One guy in the boat, the other handling the steel wire. Pretty useful when you are at least 150 km away from a crane that can lift the boat."
Nikauba and Les Piles at Grandes-Piles, Quebec.
May, 2018. Les Piles at Grandes-Piles, Quebec. Photo by Rene Garceau.
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Aug. 27, 2018. Les Piles at Grandes-Piles, Quebec. Photos by Yves Cloutier.
Yves comments: "Today, for the first time in 37 years, I jumped on the deck of a 37 ft 6 in Russel (thanks to the municipal employee that invited me to do so). The boat is "Les Piles". As you see, it's still near it's original state. The boat is used around the marina for different jobs. It was recently used to tow a barge that served as a launch platform for Fireworks. I worked mainly on R.J.Beaumont, J.V. Perrin and Amisk and helped my father (Roger Cloutier, an STMRD mechanic) on a few others including Flamand, Henry Sorgius, La Trenche, Rapide-Blanc, Coucoucache and Rapide des Coeurs."
Les Piles at Grand-piles Tuesday 9/7/19. Photos by Rene Garceau.
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June 17, 2021. The Piles, still active and working on the St-Maurice river at Grandes Piles after 74 years! Photos by Yves Cloutier. Plaque reads (translated):
This steel boat was built in 1947 by the Russel-Hipwell Company of Owen-Sound, Ontario. It is 37 feet long by 8 feet wide and weighs 19 tons; its original engine was a 6-cylinder Cummins of approximately 180 horsepower. The first operator was Mr. Gerard Vaugeois in 1948; he was replaced by Mr. Adrien Pruneau who drove it for 34 years. It was also called the "Cail boat", a nickname of Mr. Pruneau. Mr. Theo Bellemare succeeded him for eight years and Mr. Remi Bellemare was at the helm for another eight years. Rejean Boisvert was the driver of The Piles for several years at the time. Ceded to the Municipality of Grandes-Piles by the company St-Maurice River Boom & Driving, it is used today for the maintenance of the marina.
Source: Societe d'Histoire Rejean Boisvert.
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 |
