QUINTE C88242

Side Wheeler
Bay of Quinte
N44 10 35 W 77 02 30

Dimensions: 138 x 22.6 x 7.6 331 GT 178.49 NT Type of Wreck: Steamboat Location of Wreck: N44 10 35 W 77 02 30 Place and Builder: Quebec City PQ – Lubib Chobot & Bushnell Year Built: 1871

Quinte, also known as the Beauharnois, was a steamship that met a tragic fate in a devastating fire. The vessel was built in 1871 and had an official number of C88242. It was constructed by Bushnell and operated as a sidewheel steamer. Powered by a vertical beam engine, the Quinte had a single cylinder and was registered in Quebec. The ship’s dimensions were 138 feet in length, 22.6 feet in beam, and 7.6 feet in depth. It had a gross tonnage of 331.

Over the years, the ownership of the ship changed hands. It was initially owned by the Beauharnois Steam Navigation Co. in 1874, followed by Stevenson & Co. in Quebec in 1878. The vessel underwent a rebuild in 1882 and was subsequently renamed the Quinte. It came under the ownership of Edward W. Rathbun’s Deseronto Navigation Co. on June 16, 1883. The rebuilt Quinte had one deck and measured 138 feet in length, 22.6 feet in beam, and 7.6 feet in depth. It had a gross tonnage of 331.

Tragedy struck on October 23, 1889, when the Quinte caught fire. The steamer was on a voyage from Deseronto to Picton, Ontario when a fire broke out about 5 miles from Deseronto. Despite the efforts of the crew, the fire quickly engulfed the ship, leaving it burned to the water’s edge. Four lives were lost in the incident, and the registry of the vessel was subsequently closed.

News articles from the time provide further details about the tragic event. The fire was discovered in the woodwork near the fire hold when the ship was a few miles from the dock. The pilot, Collier, beached the boat on a shoal, but the passengers lost control and plunged into the water without life preservers. Pilot Collier remained at the wheel until the boat grounded, and the engines stopped, while engineer Thomas Short had to leave the engines running due to the advancing flames. Both Collier and Short suffered severe burns.

The survivors were rescued by the crew of a nearby sloop who launched boats to pick them up. Several passengers and crew members sustained injuries, including burns and bruises. Unfortunately, four individuals lost their lives in the fire. The steamer Quinte, owned by the Rathbun Company, was deemed a total loss.

The tragic incident left a mark on the community, as the Quinte was considered the best vessel in the Rathbun Company’s lake service. The news of the fire spread, and publications from different cities reported on the incident, with varying accounts of the number of lives lost. Despite the valiant efforts of the crew and rescue teams, the burning of the Quinte was a devastating event in the history of Deseronto, Ontario.