Glossary
The P.S. Lady Sherbrooke
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Cabin Cabin Cabin

The Cabins of the P.S. Lady Sherbrooke

Cabin The passengers' cabins of the P.S. Lady Sherbrooke were all located at the rear part of the boat. Altogether the underwater and surface images present a clear (no joke intended) picture of the mess that the divers were faced with when they excavated this section of the boat. In simple terms... it was not easy to understand how the cabins were organized. The team was forced to dismantle much of this area and then measure and draw each piece on the research vessel so that a reconstruction could be undertaken. At that point the puzzle then became something understandable.

The picture that unfolded was that the lower deck of the P.S. Lady Sherbrooke had three cabins for women passengers, each measuring 2 meters by 2 meters. Additional cabins, possibly of the same size, would have been located in the area but these are so badly damaged it is impossible to get any clear picture of their arrangement. A curtain would have offered the passengers some privacy.

Cabin Cabin

By the standards of today the cabins are very small, especially for first class travellers. They were however decorated in the taste of the day with moulding, paint, and gilding. The floor was painted light yellow and the walls were a soft gray. Nine coats of paint, one for each year of the boat operated, may be found on the surfaces of the cabins.

In 1819 a journalist described the cabins as follows: The ladies cabin is fitted up below, with due attention to taste and elegance. There are several separate apartments adjoining to it, but so unconnected that a whole family may be accommodated with a separate room or rooms to sleep in [...]. We feel confident in recommending her as one of the first steam boats in North America for comfort and safety.
(Montreal Herald, 15 May 1819)