MV ''Bluenose'' was a Canadian passenger and motor vehicle

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

operated by

Canadian National Railways The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue an ...

and later

CN Marine CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick. History CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway (CN) in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate ...

from 1955 to 1982. She sailed between

Bar Harbor Bar Harbor () is a resort town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population is 5,089. The town is home to the College of the Atlantic, Jackson Laboratory, and MDI Biological Laboratory. ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

and Yarmouth,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

. The vessel was named after the famed

Grand Banks The Grand Banks of Newfoundland are a series of underwater plateaus south-east of the island of Newfoundland on the North American continental shelf. The Grand Banks are one of the world's richest fishing grounds, supporting Atlantic cod, swordfi ...

fishing and racing

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

Bluenose ''Bluenose'' was a fishing and racing gaff rig schooner built in 1921 in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada. A celebrated racing ship and fishing vessel, ''Bluenose'' under the command of Angus Walters, became a provincial icon for Nova Scotia and ...

''.

Construction

In 1949, the Canadian Maritime Commission began to explore the possibility of investing in the construction of a ferry to connect the port of Yarmouth with a port in Maine. This followed a multi-year lobbying campaign of the federal government conducted by citizens and local political leaders in southwestern Nova Scotia advocating a ferry service to replace steamship connections that were not resumed following the conclusion of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The vessel was built by

Davie Shipbuilding Davie Shipbuilding is a shipbuilding company located in Lauzon, Quebec, Canada. The facility is now operating as Chantier Davie Canada Inc. and is the oldest continually operating shipbuilder in North America. History The Davie shipyard in Lauz ...

in Lauzon, Quebec, Canada. Building commenced with the laying of the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

in July 1954. MV ''Bluenose'' was launched on 25 May 1955. The ship was christened by its patron Jeanne St. Laurent, wife of Prime Minister

Louis St. Laurent Louis Stephen St. Laurent (; February 1, 1882 – July 25, 1973) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 12th prime minister of Canada from 1948 to 1957. Born and raised in southeastern Quebec, St. Laurent was a leading la ...

, whose government commissioned her construction. Mrs. St. Laurent reportedly christened the ship by saying "I name this ship Bluenose and may God protect all who sail in her."

Statistics and Livery

''Bluenose'' measured in length, had a beam of and draught of . She measured . She had the capacity to carry up to 615 passengers. The crew numbered about 96. She could also carry up to 150 automobiles and 18 trucks. ''Bluenose'' was propelled by 6

Fairbanks-Morse Fairbanks, Morse and Company was an American manufacturing company in the late 19th and early 20th century. Founded in 1823 as a manufacturer of weighing scale, weighing scales, it later diversified into pumps, engines, windmills, coffee grinder ...

38 8-1/8 diesel engines which delivered to two propellers. Her service speed was about . Automobiles and trucks were onloaded and offloaded through four large hatches, two on either side of the ship. On the promenade deck, ''Bluenose'' had an observation lounge forward and a cafeteria aft. Single berth cabins could accommodate up to 30 passengers. ''Bluenose'' had a blue hull and white superstructure. Her funnel was emblazoned with several different designs, initially with red, white and blue stripes, at one point red with a white CN (

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

) logo, at other points blue with a white CN logo, and finally with a blue funnel with white CN Marine logo.

Service

For her entire career as a ferry, ''Bluenose'' ran between

Bar Harbor, Maine Bar Harbor () is a resort town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population is 5,089. The town is home to the College of the Atlantic, Jackson Laboratory, and MDI Biological Laborat ...

and

Yarmouth, Nova Scotia Yarmouth is a port town located on the Bay of Fundy in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. Yarmouth is the shire town of Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia, Yarmouth County and is the largest population centre in the region. History Originally inhab ...

. Operations commenced in 1956. Her last run occurred on 16 October 1982. She provided remarkably reliable performance throughout her 26 years of service. Those who took this ferry across the

Gulf of Maine The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America. It is bounded by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and by Cape Sable Island at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northea ...

saved a driving distance of approximately . Daily service occurred over the warmer months. Tri-weekly service was offered during other periods, although, during the late 1970s and early 1980s, service was discontinued over the winter months. In 1982, ''Bluenose'' was replaced by a newer vessel, the 1973-built MS ''Stena Jutlandica'', which was renamed MV ''Bluenose'' before entering service. This second MV ''Bluenose'' was retired from service in October 1997.

Disposition

The

Electric Boat Company Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

Groton, Connecticut Groton ( ) is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States, located on the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is the home of General Dynamics Electric Boat, which is the major contractor for submarine work for the United St ...

, purchased ''Bluenose'' in 1983 through the

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

's Crown assets disposal process. She was renamed MV ''Marine Bluenose'', and was converted into a floating machine shop on the

Thames River The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

in Groton. In 1984 a dispute developed between the owners of the ship and Groton city officials, who claimed that the vessel was a building and was required to meet state building codes. In October 1996, ''Marine Bluenose'' was towed from the Electric Boat Company’s facilities in Groton. Thereafter, she spent several years in an advanced state of decay in

Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater i ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, moored alongside the idled Chandris liner RHMS ''Britanis'' (ex-). ''Marine Bluenose'' was towed from Tampa Bay to

Tuxpan Tuxpan (or Túxpam, fully Túxpam de Rodríguez Cano, for Enrique Rodríguez Cano) is both a municipality and city located in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The population of the city was 89,557 and of the municipality was 154,600 inhabitants, ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

for scrapping in 2000.

Commemoration

The wheel, compass, telegraph and bell from the bridge of MV ''Bluenose'' were donated to the Yarmouth County Museum by the Electric Boat Company. They are featured along with a model of the ship in a special display at the Museum which evokes the bridge of ''Bluenose''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluenose Ferries of Nova Scotia Ferries of Maine Ships built in Lévis 1955 ships CN Marine Transport in Yarmouth County Transportation in Hancock County, Maine