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THE
WELLAND SHIP CANAL JOURNAL |
Historical
: Lake Travel
IN
the early days of settlement and of the pioneers and trappers, the rivers
of the North American Continent provided a very natural means of penetrating
into the interior. In some cases, the trips thus possible were of considerable
length, without hindrance of any kind. In others, rapids, or a narrow
watershed, separated one long stretch from another, and had to be negotiated
for a continuation of the journey. As traffic developed, one solution
at any particular locality usually came to be accepted, and at such
places regular portages were established, at points of considerable
traffic this business constituting a regular industry. Among such points
may be mentioned routes which enabled traffic to pass from the Hudson
River to Lakes Ontario and Erie, with portages of relatively small length,
as, for instance, the route up the Mohawk River. Another portage of
considerable importance was at Niagara, held to be of such value that
it was controlled by a French military post as early as 1678, this passing
into British hands in 1759. In 1764, a capstan incline was built to
the top of the escarpment, 325 ft. high, on the east side of the Niagara
River, from the top of which a wagon portage, about 6 miles long, was
used for carrying bateaux and merchandise to the head of the Falls.
Tolls were 10 pounds, New York currency, and upward for each bateau.
Another
point where traffic was considerable was at Sault Ste. Marie, falls
dividing Lake Huron from Lake Superior, where is now to be found a very
interesting contrast. Here, in fact, stands one of the very early locks
of the North American Continent, close by the great structures required
to cope with the vast traffic passing through the " Soo "
at the present day. After being lost sight of for many years, this little
work on the Canadian side of the Falls, was rediscovered, and has been
reconstructed for the sake of preserving it as an historical relic.
This
lock was constructed by the Northwest Fur Company in 1797-98. It is
supposed to have been 38 ft. long, while it had a width of 8 ft. 9 in.,
but a depth of water on the sills of as little as 2 ft. 6 in. The lift
provided was 9 ft. It was destroyed in 1814 by United States Forces,
and until 1855 a portage of 1 mile long was necessary to get past the
rapids. At the present time, traffic at this point makes use of locks
on both the Canadian and United States sides. The Canadian lock is 900
ft. long, 60 ft. wide and has 20 ft. of water on the sills, while on
the United States side there are four locks, the two largest of which
are no less than 1,350 ft. long by 80 ft. wide and have 24-J ft. of
water on the sills at normal levels.
Obviously
the early effort referred to must have been of very limited capacity,
while the present locks at the Soo pass, in the short seven months for
which navigation is open, a far greater freight tonnage than the Suez
Canal, the Panama Canal, and the Manchester Ship Canal put together.
In 1926, the Soo traffic amounted to no less than 85,679,087 tons. The
figure of 90 millions has even been exceeded. In round figures, the
whole traffic on the Great Lakes at the present time is estimated at
125 million short tons. Rates are about O.1 cent per ton-mile, or one-fifth
of the comparable rail charges. This great traffic forms the subject
of a number of annual reports and statistical returns in which it is
regularly analysed.
All statistics bring out prominently the fact that, in the Lake traffic,
three great classes of freight preponderate ; these are ore, coal and
grain. These are shipped in bulk, and to them must be added some other
smaller classes also handled in bulk. In effect, bulk freight now constitutes
98 per cent, of the total, and the peculiar nature of this traffic has
resulted in special developments, the like of which are to be seen nowhere
else in the world. These developments have been from time to time referred
to in ENGINEERING, and it is not the province of this article to discuss
in a general way the facilities provided at ports to meet the requirements
of this trade, but, for the necessary understanding of the general situation,
some reference to the conditions is essential, bearing in mind always
that the season of open navigation extends over only seven months of
the year. The average navigable season lasts from between the middle
of April to the middle of December ; it varies from 260 days on the
southerly lakes to 230 days on the northerly waters of Lake Superior,
and on the St. Lawrence Canals. The present Welland Canal, between Lakes
Erie and Ontario, has an average season of 243 days.
The
ore traffic, which is by far the greatest of the three main classes,
moves eastward from the Duluth area at the head of Lake Superior down
to ports on Lakes Michigan and Erie. The ore is used largely at the
ports of destination themselves, but much of it is subsequently shipped
further inland by rail, to centres of the iron and steel industries.
This class is responsible for about 67 per cent, of the traffic at the
Soo. It will be noticed that none of this traffic passes down to the
Lake Ontario area by water.
The
coal traffic bulks next. The bulk of this traffic reaches water at Lake
Erie ports and proceeds north-west to the head of Lake Superior, and
some 17 per cent, of the traffic passing through Sault Ste. Marie is
made up of this class. A goodly quantity, however, is diverted just
short of Sault Ste. Marie into Lake Michigan. Corresponding
charts, but showing the points of origin, indicate that the bituminous-coal
traffic reaches Lake Erie at a number of ports on its south shore, while
the anthracite traffic is transferred to steamer mainly at the eastern
ports, such as Buffalo.
Both these forms of bulk traffic have been responsible for port and
shipping developments of an unusual nature. To give some idea of these
it need only be stated that no less than 12,508 long tons of ore have
been loaded into one vessel in the short space of 16i minutes. Loading
at a rate of over 5,000 tons per hour is common. As regards unloading,
the same cargo of 12,508 tons, referred to above, was unloaded in 3
hours and 5 minutes. The average stay in port, at loading terminals,
is something of the order of five to six hours only. Coal is shipped
at rates up to 3,100 tons per hour for bituminous, a.nd about 1,300
tons per hour for anthracite. These high rates of loading, and quick
turn-rounds, enable individual boats to carry 400,000 tons in a season
on an average haul of 1,000 miles. By reason of balanced cargoes (not
always possible, however), the William K. Field in 1924 carried 552,014
short tons in a season of 7 months 17 days, on a draught of 19 ft. In
1925, the James MacNaughton carried 554,100 tons.
The vessels which this traffic has produced, and among which the one
just mentioned must be included, are as unique as the port facilities
which have been developed. The boats plying in this bulk trade have
steadily increased in size, until the largest vessels run to as much
as 15,000 to 16,000 tons capacity. The largest single cargo carried
in 1926 was of 15,900 tons. The largest vessels have a length of 637
ft. and beam of 64 ft., and have block coefficients of the order of
0-886. The number of 600-footers is constantly increasing, and is now
well over 300. Deck hatches are placed at 12-ft. or 24 -ft. centres,
the large boats having, perhaps, as many as 36 or 38 hatches at 12-ft.
centres. The machinery is right aft, and is usually a triple-expansion
engine and Scotch boiler, though motor vessels are increasing in number.
Another type of vessel steadily increasing in number is the self-unloader,
a recent example of which, the Valley Camp, was described in ENGINEERING,
vol. cxxiii, page 695. These vessels have not, however, so far been
developed to the size of the ordinary bulk freighter engaged in the
shipment of of ore, coal and grain, and their use is restricted to some
of the smaller classes of traffic. They run, nevertheless, to 550 ft.
overall, and of a capacity of 12,000 tons. In 1924, the Fred. G. Hartwell
carried through the Soo Canal locks, on a 19-ft. draught, the largest
ore cargo of the year, of 13,776 net tons, and also one of coal of only
a little less. When the grain traffic came on, the same vessel got through
a cargo of 460,000 bushels of wheat and another of 487,000 bushels of
rye. One of the largest grain cargoes put through the locks has been
one of 760,000 bushels of oats, in the W. Grant Morden, on a 21-ft.
draught, in 1915. During the 1928 season, the Lemoyne carried a, record
cargo of 408,000 bushels of wheat, and 158,000 bushels of flax on a
20-ft. draught, equivalent to 16,700 short tons.
As we have given figures for ore and coal loading, we may quote one
or two relating to grain cargoes, which constitute the third class of
heavy bulk traffic. An exceptionally fast rate was achieved at Port
Arthur in 1921, when 355,000 bushels were loaded in 5 hours. Other figures
are: 130,000 bushels in one hour at Fort William, and 150,000 in 70
minutes (2,143 per minute) at the same point. Grain constitutes about
11 per cent, of the tonnage passing through the locks at Sault Ste.
Marie. All these three large classes of cargo are handled by the same
type of vessel, the grain and ore moving eastward, the return trips,
where possible, being made with coal. The traffic, however, is unbalanced,
and consequently the coal traffic benefits by cheap competition rates.
The
case of the grain traffic is quite different from that of the ore and
coal trade which, as described is local. In the grain traffic, a very
large part of the freight is for destinations overseas, and the question
is how best to get it down to the ocean ports from the producing areas.
The grat western tracts of Canada, and the Dalota’s in the uUS.
The general flow of this traffic is represented by the diagram, Fig.
3, taken as typical, though actually representing wheat only, from the
report of Messrs. Fay, Spofford and Thorndike. The figures given on
the curves are millions of bushels. The broken lines represent wheat
of Canadian origin, the continuous lines United States produce. The
quantities vary according to the class of grain, and from year to year
according to harvest. Last year, the harvest was a record. The grain
making use of lake ports runs to between
500,000,000 and 600,000,000 bushels, but this is not all exported overseas.
For the ocean journey, the traffic makes its way from the lake terminals
to a
varietv of Atlantic ports as will be. seen from diagram. With out exception,
however, the largest quantities leave from Montreal, although this port
is only open for part of the year. Quebex and St. Johns benefit from
this disability, but the port of New York actually ranges next in importance
to Montreal. In 1928, the grain handled at Montreal amounted to 425,000,000
bushels, of which some 210,000,000 were received for export.
Montreal
has excellent facilities for handling the grain trade however the shipping
ports at the head of the lakes are even better equipped. Fort William-Port
Arthur ship something like 45 per cent, of the total, and, at these
ports, which are contiguous and virtually form one shipping point, there
are no less than 36 elevators with an aggregate capacity of 64,910,000
bushels. It is not necessary to enter into the details of the various
types of grain and their respective contributions to the total traffic.
Each class of traffic has its own special characteristics and favours
special ports, and a discussion of
these details is not germane to our present purpose. It should be noted,
however, that the export traffic is catered for, with some degree of
rivalry,
ma.inlv bv Mnntreal and New York. Mnntreal! Has the advantage of a through
route by water fromt the head of the lakes, but, at present is only
available for freight vessels of a moderate size. The large vessels
carrying grain do not pass below Lake Erie, at the eastern end of which
cargoes have to be transferred to smaller ships or rail. To proceed
to Montreal.
Some
75 per cent, of the grain traffic passing the Soo reaches the foot of
Lake Erie, and is there transshipped either at Port Colborne or Buffalo.
In 1927, some 154,000,000 bushels continued from Port Colborne to Montreal
by water, and 35,000,000 by rail: late shipments resuled in the diversion
of unusual quantities to Buffalo.
The
present canal size of steamer runs to a length of 261 feet, 43 foot
beam and 20 foot draught, carrying 2,800 long tons. It is expected that
when the canals are enlarged, some ore traffic will find its way to
Hamilton, Toronto and Montreal by water, and the grain traffic will
follow suit. The coal traffic from Lake Erie, eastward, will increase
and even coal from Wales and Cape Breton will travel westward.
Travelling
the Third Welland Canal through St. Catharines
LETHBRIDGE
at Port Weller
