Canadian historical shipping information sources

There are many sources of Canadian historical shipping information on the web and many web sites pointing to them. There is no point in attempting to replicate these. This page simply attempts to document a number of major sources that deal comprehensively with Canadian merchant ships or a major subset of them. These sources which should be well known to Canadian maritime historians are included primarily as a service to British, Australian and New Zealand historians who tend to be less familiar with them.

Unless a source covers a major category of shipping or major geographical region comprehensively it won’t be listed here no matter its other importance, so no offence should be taken at its omission. However, please feel welcome to suggest additions.

The links on the web sites listed below will lead you to many other sources.

http://www.marmuseum.ca/research.html

http://www.bruzelius.info/Nautica/Links/Links.html

Searchable on-line databases

There are a number of major on-line databases of Canadian-registered ships. They are:

http://www.marmuseum.ca/research.html provides access to four searchable on-line databases

Canadian Great Lakes port registrations

C.H.J. Snider’s schooner list. Vessels listed in the "Schooner Days" columns in the Toronto Telegram 1931-1954

The Mills list of Canadian steam ships up to 1930 (also included in following database)

The Wallace list of Canadian square-rigged sailing ships up to 1920 (see also book list)

http://daryl.chin.gc.ca:8000/basisbwdocs/sid/title1e.html

Developed by the Federal Archaeology Office. Combines ship registration details from a variety of Canadian sources in a readily searchable format. Ships that did not have an official number are identified by a unique seven digit number commencing with 9, specific to the database. Can also be searched by masters, owners, builders and voyages. Easier to search than the other registrations’ database, but somewhat limited by the lack of integration and homogenisation of the records from the different sources. Records from some sources do not necessarily indicate steamship in the means of propulsion search field but are indicated as steam ships by being sourced from the Mills list. For at least one source, sailing ship tonnages have been entered as gross at a time when British ship tonnage measurement law only provided for the measurement of net tonnage.

http://www.geocities.com/svandenbosch/ShipList.html

A listing of some 3,000 vessels that operated on the Great Lakes after 1900, mostly steam but including some schooners and schooner-barges and vessels built outside Canada and some built as early as 1880. Includes details of fates.

Ships and Seafarers of Atlantic Canada CD-ROM

This CD-ROM contains databases created for the Atlantic Canada Shipping Project undertaken by the Maritime History Group at the Memorial University of Newfoundland from 1976 to 1983. The vessels database was compiled from registrations at ten major Canadian ports up to 1914 (and to 1936 in the case of Newfoundland). Includes vessels registered at Bermuda. A second database contains details of masters and seamen, ports of call and voyages from the crew agreements of vessels registered at three ports in the period 1863-1914. A third database contains details from a one percent sample of crew agreements from non-Canadian vessels for comparative purposes.

For further details and to purchase refer to http://www.mun.ca/mha/publications.php

Books containing substantial listings of categories of Canadian ships

Parker, John P., 1960, Sails of the Maritimes, The Maritime Museum of Canada. Includes a detailed list of Canadian three and four masted schooners.

Parker, John P., 1967, Cape Breton Ships and Men, Toronto. pp 178 – 192 provide a comprehensive list.

Spicer, Stanley T., 1984, Sails of Fundy. The Schooners and Square-riggers of the Parrsboro Shore, Lancelot Press, Hantsport, Nova Scotia. pp 86-115 provide a comprehensive list of vessels built along the Parrsboro shore from 1820 to 1920.

Wallace, F. W., 1924, Wooden Ships and Iron Men, published Hodder and Stoughton in 1924, 1973 White Lion Publishers, London and New York. No line-by-line list as such but documents many individual ships.

Wallace, F. W., 1927, In the Wake of the Wind-Ships. Notes, records, and biographies pertaining to the square-rigged merchant marine of British North America, Hodder and Stoughton. No line-by-line list as such but documents many individual ships.

Wallace, F. W., 1929, Record of Canadian Shipping, 1786-1920, Musson, Toronto. Not sighted but presumably relevant given title and the author’s other publications.

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