Chemainus Tug Boat

Mural #15

Mural #15 — Chemainus Tug Boat30.5M X 13M (10.5’ X 43’) Legion Street
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Artists: Mark Heine and Harry Heine

Painted in 1984.

The tug boat Chemainus was built at Chemainus in 1909 for the Victoria Lumber & Manufacturing Co. Ltd. Equipped with a coal burning engine (this was changed to oil in the 1920s), she was 26.8 metres (93 ft) long with a 6.4 metre (22 ft) beam, and a depth of 2.9 metres (10 ft).

On November 14, 1911, she caught fire at the coal bunkers in Coal Harbour, Vancouver, and burned to the water’s edge. She was salvaged in December and rebuilt. After being sold in 1918 to Kingcome Navigation Co. Ltd., she was brought back to Chemainus in 1923 by the Chemainus Towing Co. Ltd.

Then on November 24, 1945, she ran aground at Copeland Island (Ragged Island), and was written off as a total loss.