New Construction in the Yards

New Construction in the Burrard Shipyards

Building ships was, after all, the primary function of the Burrard Versatile Shipyards. In the near century the yard operated, over four hundred ships were constructed. Fishing boats, ferries, log barges, tugs, wartime cargo vessels, and ice breakers were all crafted in these yards. Many of the ships made there contributed significantly to Canadian history. The famous ice-breaker "St. Roch",
the liner "Princess Louise", and the Victory Ship "Westend Park"
are all valuable parts of our heritage.

Higher resolution images may be obtained for any of the photographs on this page
simply by clicking on them

The photographs on this page have been arranged chronologically-
From the most recent to the oldest.

The men and women of Burrard built a number of ice breakers.
The "Franklin", 27_1211 & 27_1213, was constructed for the Canadian Department of Transport. The icebreaker "Franklin" under construction

The completed vessel.

A sister ship, the "Pierre Radisson", was also crafted.- 27_1215 & 1220.

Early stages of construction, 1976.

Ready for service

The "Imperial Skeena", an oil tanker constructed for Imperial Oil is shown in 27_1340 & 27_1342.

The "Imperial Skeena"
in dry dock.

Completed.

The keel for the Oceanographic Research Vessel H.M.C.S. "Quest" was laid in 1967.

The launching ceremony, 1969. -27_1423

The "Quest" completed. -27_1447

The "Parizeau" built for the Department of
Mines and Technical Surveys as
a tidal current and survey vessel.- 27_1471

The "Northland Prince", was completed in 1963 for the Northland Shipping Company Ltd. It was both a passenger and cargo vessel and is shown here in 27_1628.

The "Ready" (27_1656) was a search and rescue vessel
completed for the
Department of Transport in 1963.

The H.M.C.S. "Yukon" was a destroyer escort completed
for the Royal Navy in 1963. It was the third of six
"Mackenzie" class destroyer- escorts to join the fleet,
and the fifth to be built at Burrard. Their main purpose
was detecting submarines.

The launch of the "Yukon".- 27_1768

The "Yukon" near its commissioning May 25, 1963. - 27_1800

Many of the ferries which continue to ply our coastal waters had their origins
in the Burrard Shipyards.

The "Tsawwassen" under construction. - 27_1830

The "Tsawwassen" ready for service. - 27_1851

The search and rescue vessel "Simon Fraser", built for the Department of Transport,
is shown in 27_1873 & 27_1893.

The hull section under construction

Complete and ready for service.

The "Straits Cold Decker" was one of a number of self-unloading
non-propelled log barges built for Straits Towing.

27_1964 shows the barge loaded,
while 27_1966 and 27_1967 show

the unloading taking place.

The "Saint James Douglas",
a lighthouse tender completed for
the Department of Transport in 1956. 27_1981.

27_2056 shows H.M.C.S. "Kootenay" steaming
past Lions Gate Bridge (Vancouver) in 1959 on its way to the
Esquimalt Navel Base. This vessel was the
eleventh destroyer escort to be commissioned of the original
order of fourteen., and the first of the Restigouche class
to be commissioned on the West Coast..

In 1948 Burrard completed eleven
colliers for the Government of France.

27_2166 and 27_2167 show one of these,
the "S.S. Astree", under construction and completed.

27_2282 shows the "Blue Peter III" (later re- named the "Ottawa Page"), which was completed in 1946 for the British Ministry of War Transport.

H.M.S. "Dodman Point" 27_2288 and "Beachy Head" 27_2303 were maintenance ships completed in 1945 and 1944, respectively, for the navy.

The "Westend Park" a "Victory Freighter"
and the 300th cargo ship launched in Canada,
is shown at its launch in 1944. 27_2309.

The "Fort Wallace", named after Alfred Wallace, the company's founder, was also a freighter, one of the 34 ships of this type built by the Burrard Shipyards, and the 200th vessel built since the beginning of the war. Photos 27_2320 and 27_2323 show this vessel under power.

The "Fort St. James", completed in 1941, was the first North Sands freighter to be built at Burrard. Photos 27_2362 and 27_2401 show it under construction and completed.

27_2403 shows the H.M.C.S. "Wasaga",
a minesweeper built for
the Royal Canadian Navy, ready for sea trials.

27_2414 shows a corvette which was also built for the Royal navy.

"The Wetaskiwin"

The "Fifer", a yacht completed in 1939, was often
used to transport members of the Royal Family.
Photos 27_2417 and 27_2422
show its elegant lines.

The "J.H. Carlisle" was built as a fireboat for the
City of Vancouver in 1928. 27_2446 shows the completed
vessel (the "Malahat" is in the background, while
27_2449 shows it in
action. 27_2454 depicts
the engine room.

The "Saint Roch", the first vessel to navigate the Northwest Passage from both East and West, is perhaps the most famous ship ever to be built in Canada.

27_2458 shows it nearing
completion in 1928;
27_2464 shows it in service.

The "Princess Louise",
a luxurious C.P.R. passenger vessel
completed in 1921, was one of the
first major projects of Wallace Shipyards
(renamed "Burrard Shipyards" after 1921).

27_2499 shows the vessel nearing completion;
27_2503 and 27_2504 are scenes
from the launching ceremony.
The former shows
Mr. D.C. Coleman, President of the C.P.R.,

with Mrs. Troup, sponsor.
The latter shows,
from right to left, Mrs. Brodie,
Mrs. Alfred Wallace,
and Mrs. Troup.

27_2518, 27_2522, 27_2523, 27_2526, and 27_2529
show some of the sumptuous interiors
of the "Princess Louise.

27_2537 shows the "Princess Louise" steaming through Burrard Inlet.

The "Canadian Volunteer", a freighter
built for the Canadian Government in 1921. -27_2607

27_2635 shows three schooners being made for the Canada West Navigation Company - 1916.

27_2641 Shows Mrs. H. W. Brown in the frame of the "Maple Brown"

27_2648 Shows the "Mable Brown" under sail.

27_2653 Shows the ribs being assembled
for an unidentified schooner.

27_2655 Workers taking a break from drilling holes in the keel.

27_2666 shows the "War Dog", the first steel ship built in B.C. It was built for the Kishimoto Steamship Company of Osaka, and later sold to the Imperial Munitions Board in 1917. 27_2675 shows the completed vessel.

The triple expansion engines of "War Power", also built for the Imperial Munitions Board, are shown in 27_2691. The founder Alfred Wallace stands by its side.

The tug "Point Grey", shown in 27_2700,
was built for the Department of Public Works in 1911;
it was lengthened in 1917.

27_2704 Shows another tug, the "Progressive",

built in 1906, and situated on the marine railway.
The building at the top of the cradle
is the boiler house, with the electrical department
situated on the second floor. The large building at the back of the boiler house
was both the carpenter shop and the joiner shop, the latter being located on the floor above.

27_2709 Shows the "Kestrel", a fisheries patrol protection and lighthouse tender built for
the Department of Marine and Fisheries in1903.