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The mighty S.S Noronic, nicknamed The Queen of the Great Lakes, docked in Toronto Harbor, 1940’s, The Toronto Star Archives
The Great Lakes once harbored a long forgotten industry- literally. Toronto harbor, as well as other cities along the Great Lakes & Locks systems were once home to a suite of luxury cruise ships in the early 1900’s, an industry that came to an abrupt and fiery end. Though in recent years some luxury lines (Viking, Carnival, etc…) have returned offering somewhat similar cruises of the Great Lakes, the thought of ocean liners tailored so close to home is a foreign thought to most Ontarians.
Canada Steamship Lines (abbreviated as CSL) operated a fleet of around a dozen ships, mostly offering overnight tours of the great lakes, others reaching as far as Bermuda. Promotional material from 1917 markets the company's vast array of lines with the tag “From Niagara To the Sea.” Canada Steamship Lines was founded in 1845, offering river boats along the St. Lawrence river. The company grew as did the economy along the Great Lakes waterways, assimilating with multiple companies such as the Northern Navigation Company. By the turn of the century the Company was operating steamships around Ontario and making a name for themselves, however the most famous pieces of the CSL fleet were yet to hit the water.
Built in 1901, the SS Huronic was the first large capacity steamship to join the CSL fleet. It had 3 decks, and capacity for over 200 passengers. It was acquired by the Northern Navigation Company in 1911, which merged with Canada Steamship Lines in 1913. The NNC had constructed another ship in a similar style following the success of the Huronic in 1909, which was also absorbed by Canada Steamship Lines. This ship was also a massive success on the waters, in revenue and revues, and by 1911 there was already talk of constructing a third ship. This ship would be grandest in scale out of all three- which would come to be the core of the Canada Steamship Lines fleet. The plans were delayed slightly when the designer passed away aboard the Titanic (which heavily inspired the ships design), however the ship was still launched efficiently by 1913.
Those who rode the Noronic, or any CSL cruise ship for that matter look back very fondly on the times they had aboard the ships. They were designed for the wealthy, and were equipped as such. The Noronic had a library, music room, beauty salon, amongst many other amenities and services.Walls were lined with hand carved panels, and the dining room detailed murals.
The SS Noronic sails in Prescott, 1939, Toronto Public Library Archive
Postcards sold onboard detail the luxuries of the ship, Maritime Archive
An example of an average voyage any of the three ships would take were stops in Sarnia, Windsor, Detroit, Sault Ste. Marie, Port Arthur, Fort William and Duluth. The cruise would take 7 days, and operated 3 times a week (once each per ship). The ships ran mostly without incident (minor groundings with minimal damage and injury) until 1945, when the downfall of the CSL cruise line began, unbeknownst to them.
While running the above mentioned route, fate lead the Harmonic towards a turn for the worst. At around 5 am on July 17, 1945, the SS Harmonic routinely docked at the port in Sarnia, Ontario. While passengers and crew were sleeping, a fire started from an unknown source and was discovered by a delivery truck driver loading supplies at 8:30 am. Alarm was raised and Elmer Kleinsmith, a local dockworker was able to use a coal crane to rescue much of the ship's population. Thankfully, the ship was evacuated with no fatalities, however the ship was too damaged to save and subsequently scrapped. The cause of the fire was not discovered, and rumors of arson circulated.
The fire gutted Harmonic sits gutted on the shores of Sarnia, Sarnia Journal
Despite the loss of one of the three core ships, Canada Steamship Lines continued operation with just 2. The Noronic was still the Queen of the Great Lakes, and continued to be the main attraction. On September 14th, 1949 the Noronic set sail from Detroit, Michigan. It was carrying 524 passengers, and 171 crew members, reaching Pier 9 in Toronto Harbor at around 7 pm on September 16. Operations had been running as normal, and as usual many of the passengers and crew departed into the city for the night. There was no way to know for sure how many people were on board, however this was not an issue- normally.
At around 2:30 am a passenger discovered smoke pouring out of a linen closet on a lower level, and rushed to get the nearest staff member. He alerted a bellboy, who helped him attempt to fight the fire. After a few minutes of fighting with a fire extinguisher (and critically not sounding the alarm), the two fled and the bellboy alerted the Captain. The Captain then attempted to raise the alarm, however it was already fire damaged at that point and did not work. The red glow of the blaze aboard the ship was spotted by Toronto residents on the shore, who called the Fire Department. The situation was well out of control at this point, and by only 2:38 the fire had reached the deck of the ship, casting fiery shadows across the city.
The SS Noronic ablaze in Toronto Harbor, Toronto star archives
Firefighters arrived at 2:41 to a horrific scene. The only exits on the ship were on the lower level, and had been quickly engulfed in flames. Some passengers jumped over the edges of the ship and plummeted into the frigid waters below, others slid down tether ropes into the water, suffering burns on their hands. Firefighters quickly erected a ladder and began boarding to rescue passengers, as did civilians on the shore who saw the events unfolding. The fact that many people had left ship for the night made it difficult to determine how many people on board there were to rescue in the first place. Brave rescues by firefighters, civilians on shore, and the captain of the ship saved the lives of countless passengers. By almost all accounts, Captain William Taylor was seen helping people leave, and was one of the last to leave the ship. By 5:00 am the fire had been extinguished, however the extensive damage was apparent- as was the loss of life.
Passengers slide down ropes designed for tethering to shore into the freezing waters below, Toronto Star Archive
Firefighters tasks shifted from rescuing survivors, to removing bodies from the burnt out ship. Morning newspapers ran headlines “Fearing 200 dead.” Just as fast, an official investigation began, as well as rumors of arson, just like the Harmonic. The official death count was clocked in at 119, lives lost, with just one of those being of a crew member. The investigation was not able to produce the cause of the fire (though it was deemed “likely” to be arson), however placed blame of the incident on the dated safety systems of the ship, as well as the Captain. Even though he had risked his life to help, he was made somewhat of the scapegoat of the incident; some publications started rumors he had been drinking the night of the fire. He was suspended for a year, though he retired before that and never sailed again. As a result of the fire, much stricter safety measures were put in place for passenger ships on the great lakes, which made CSL sideline a number of their ships.
The smoldering remains of the SS Noronic lay in Toronto Harbor the morning after the fire, Moore Museum
This however, would not be the last bout of misfortune Canada Steamship Lines was dealt. Less than one year later on August 14, 1950, another fire would break out aboard a CSL ship. This time the SS Quebec, which was docked in Tadoussac, Quebec, along the St. Lawrence River. The small village quickly became a scene of chaos when a flaming passenger ship came cascading into the port. A fire was discovered on board in a linen closet (just like the Noronic), and the captain quickly made the smart decision of running the ship aground at the nearest port. That way, burned victims could be escorted off the ship as quickly as possible. Despite the Captain and Crew’s best efforts, 7 people died in the incident, which was also suspected to have been started by arson, though just like all the other fires the culprit was never found.
Smoke billows out of the SS Quebec as the injured are evacuated on shore, Shipspotting.com
This last fire would be the straw that broke the camel's back. With repeated arsons striking the ships, CSL cruises gained a reputation of danger, and heavily lost out on sales. In addition to the constant threat, Canada Steamship Lines had lost the majority of its fleet, (specifically two thirds of its largest vessels). The only remaining large capacity vessel in the fleet was the Huronic, which CSL chose to sell for scrap the same year. The remaining small capacity vessels were converted to cargo ships, which now made up the majority of CSL’s fleet.
A plaque in a nearby park to the site memorializes the tragedy, Read the Plaque
With the only cruise company operating in the great lakes switching to freight only (which it still operates today, and was headed by former Prime Minister Paul Martin at one point), the cruise industry in the Great Lakes disappeared seemingly overnight. In the wake of the Noronic tragedy, Fire-proof bulkheads, inspected fire extinguishers, automatic alarms, and sprinkler systems became mandatory on all lake bound vessels, and $2 Million dollars was awarded in compensation. Many passengers had fond memories of the now forgotten industry, however a string of tragedies cut it short. In recent years Viking Cruise lines have begun operating similar lines that CSL once did, however far less frequently, and less specific to the Great Lakes. It truly would have been a site to see massive steamships like the Noronic traveling through Ontario’s locks. The site of the disaster in the Harbor has since been filled in, and the approximate location of the hull of the ship is currently the Lobby of the Waterfront Weston Hotel in Toronto. A plaque in a park beside the building memorializes the lives lost in the tragedy, and honors those who worked to help save survivors.
Still, the question remains, what caused the fires that brought a large industry crashing to the ground? It seems that there are 2 lines of thinking. The first being, the fires were caused by deliberate arson. Rumors supporting this have been circulating since the days the ships sank. On top of this, the circumstances of the fires are the same throughout all ships, pointing to deliberate planning and premeditation. What was the motive of an arson attack? To destroy the ships? Or harm the people? If someone was a terrorist looking to harm innocent people, it would be odd to target one brand of cruise ship in three attacks over 5 years. It seems much more likely that someone was targeting the brand itself, for the attacks to be so specific and close together. If this was a business war, CSL had no direct competitors in its field. A motive that would be fulfilled through the fires is unknown. No matter the motive, someone had something to gain by hurting the specific cruise ship brand. Was the motive then personal or financial? Given the lack of competitors, could the motive for harming the cruise ships and the brand image be personal? Could a disgruntled employee of CSL be to blame for the arsons?
Another line of thinking is that somehow the fires were accidental, and nobody intentionally set them. For all three disasters to be accidental CSL would still be at fault, the blame shifting to their safety procedures and regulations. Perhaps rumors of arson circulated to cover up faulty wiring, or another dilapidation. What happened aboard the three vessels in the late 1940’s continues to be a mystery today, however the devastation caused left a lasting impact.