This new tug replaces the 29-year old tug "F. H. Anson" and the 31-year old paddle alligator "Dokis" and is expected to haul about 100,000 cords of pulpwood annually to the big newsprint mill at Iroquois Falls. The "Clark B. Davis" is a big sister to the tug "T. Gibbens", built four years ago and operating also on Abitibi Lake. Between them, they tow the bulk of logs moved on this lake and both were built by Steelcraft of Owen Sound.

These special logging tugs were not built completely...then cut into sections for shipment...but designed and constructed so that each section would fit onto a flatcar, and when final assembly was completed at launching site there would be no loss of strength. The assembly point for these sections was at Lowbush River, Ontario, a C.N.R. siding about one mile up the Lowbush river from Lake Abitibi. A crew of 19 experienced men, aided by two cranes and a tractor, unloaded each section onto the ways where final assembly and launching took place. From the time the sections arrived to the actual launching took 53 days.

Although Lake Abitibi is large, the average depth of water is only about eight feet, and at points where the log booms are collected it may not be more than four to five feet. Consequently, these tugs had to be designed to operate in the latter areas...with an operating draft of between 42" and 48". Each tug is a special flat-bottom design, has a single screw with tunnel drive, and powerful machinery.

The "T. Gibbens" was built in 1947 and is 85 feet overall length with 18 feet beam, and powered by a 180 horsepower Fairbanks-Morse diesel engine. The "Clark B. Davis", which was just launched, is 85 feet overall length with 20 feet beam, and is more powerful, with a 320 horsepower Lister-Blackstone diesel engine. Both tugs are equipped with Cummins "Dependable" Diesels for auxillary power...Steelcraft Hydraulic steering gears...and special Russel warping machinery. Complete living accommodation is provided for a crew of 12 men on the "T. Gibbens" and for 14 men on the "Clark B. Davis".

Low towing operations on Lake Abitibi are much like other "warping" operations. Logs are watered or driven down the various streams into the lake and made up into booms around the shore. For readers not familiar with this type of operation, here is a brief description. Supposing you were Skipper on one of these tugs and you were told to go 25 miles across the lake and pickup a raft of 8000 cords. By weight this would be about 16,000 tons. You would be driven across the lake at a pleasant 8 to 9 miles per hour by the conventional propeller in its shallow-draft tunnel. Then instead of hitching to the raft when you arrive, you would stand off about one mile...drop your big anchor which is held by a 1" steel cable wound on the winch drum...and slowly move to the raft, unwinding the cable from the big drum.

Each tug is equipped with a powerful variable speed warping set capable of handling a mile of 1" steel wire rope. It's a tough looking winch, something like a mine hoist, and this is her pulling power when it comes to work.

Photos courtesy George Poirier.

The tow now begins...by winding or warping in the cable. One mile per hour is a good average, depending on wind and weather, for if you faster the logs may jump or go under the boom. When you have wound in all the cable, you have achieved one mile, and must lift the anchor, unhook the raft, go ahead about a mile, drop anchor again and carry through the same procedure. It's slow work but in the next 25 hours you will have moved about 16,000 tons of logs...all with a small crew and a 320 horsepower warping tug.

Rafts of logs vary between 5,000 and 10,000 cords depending largely on the distance and direction of travel...as many narrows have to be navigated before the river is reached. At the mouth of the river, smaller booms are made up and towed 18 miles down the river to Twin Falls where a power dam halts river navigation. Logs are sluiced through the dam and run free for the next 12 miles to the mill boom and jackladder at Iroquois Falls. Pulp logs also arrive at the mill by rail, truck, and from other rivers but the majority arrive from the Lake Abitibi region.

In deep water you would probably tow the same cordage with a bigger tug of conventional design, and with a 1,000 horsepower diesel you could probably haul a 10,000 cord raft at a slightly higher average speed. However when the shallow waters of Lake Abitibi are to be considered, a special design is necessary. The "T. Gibbens", built four years ago, has proved itself and must have hauled over half a million cords of pulp logs in her young life; consequently the "Clark B. Davis" was built to similar design.

"The latest addition to our Lake Abitibi towing fleet certainly looks a good one" said Mr. Clark Davis at the launching ceremony, "the "T. Gibbens" has done a good job and this should do a better one" he concluded. Mrs. Clark Davis christened the tug after being presented by Mr. T. H. Stone, Woodlands Manager for the Iroquois Falls Division, with the silver launching shears. A silver tray, engraved with a profile of the new ship, was presented to Mr. Clark Davis by Mr. R. Jardine Russel, co-founder of the builders, Russel-Hipwell Engines Limited.

Trueman Gibbens retirement party program Mar. 31, 1952.

 

George Poirier posted these undated photos in the "I grew up in Iroquois Falls" Facebook group May 2015.
The left is c. late 40's and the right c. early 70's.

 

Photos courtesy George Poirier.

 

THE HISTORIC GIBBENS AND DAVIS BOATS http://iroquoisfallschamber.com/page/tourism Located at Anson Memorial Park: The Trueman Gibbens and the Clark B. Davis Boats were transported from Owen Sound by train and were assembled and launched in Lowbush in 1946 and 1951 respectively. Specifically designed for work in the shallow waters of Lake Abitibi of depths less than 10 feet, the boats used their 3000 pound anchors to move large tows exceeding 7000 cunits of wood. These boats had an all steel construction, were 82 feet in length, 18 feet across the beam, and had a crew of ten men. They had drafts of only 3 feet 6 inches. Their anchors were attached to 5000 feet of 1 1/8 inch cable. The boats would sail to an area selected by the captains, drop anchor, hook their tows and then winch the log booms to their anchors. These gigantic log booms would then journey by water to the paper mill for pulp and paper production. The final year of service for the boats was 1973, when a change in the company's cutting methods meant that wood for the mill be transported by land instead of waterways.

 

X II and T. Gibbens c. mid 80s, Twin Falls, ON. Photos courtesy Roger Gaboury.

 

Eddie O'Donnell Jr. was the driving force behind Lake Abitibi Adventures, and now lives in southern Ontario. While owner of the Perry Lake Lodge, he bought both the T. Gibbens and Clark B. Davis and had them moved to Matheson, Ontario, where he had plans to make them into floating restaurants. Tim Olaveson Sr. comments (June 19, 2017): "...just got off the phone with Eddie. He was very happy that the boat was someday going to be visible to the public. The Gibbens towed the Davis from Twin Falls to Matheson, the engine was removed there and sold to an outfit close to Owen Sound to repower a tug boat. The money from this engine was paid to the contractor that moved the boats over the dam at Twin." Moving the T. Gibbens below Twin Falls dam heading to Matheson. Photos courtesy James Turner. Jim Biederman was one of the dozer drivers. Tim Olaveson Sr. commented (Apr. 12, 2016): "Three D8 tractors were more than enough to pull it to the hill but barely enough to hold it on the down hill slide to the river below the dam. Eddie O'Donnell was quoted in saying Jim Biederman was white by the time he got to the river below the dam ,he was in high gear trying to stay ahead of the vessel." Photos courtesy John Shea: