Sadly we must announce, that the Canadiana has died...
Cut to pieces by the greed running rampant here in Western New York...
But the culprits will not
smile for long.
We have written her life's story.
The History Book of the
S.S. Canadiana
It details her amazing 94 year life, from beautiful beginning to this most tragic end. This book was to be published for real, but now that must await another day. Even here greed came to stifle and steal. So instead, we will just give the book away. You will find it on these pages. It is still an unfinished story. The final chapter still being written.
But this way will allow it to be complete, to include many more pictures, and be even more worthwhile.
As an example of what is still being done... Just days ago, before the Christmas of year 2004, we pulled the engine, along with other machinery, off what is left of the keel, from the
dry-dock at Port Colborne. These pieces are to be placed in a permanent display of our maritime heritage and history on our shore, near the point she sailed from for so many years.
The book tells of our successes and how they were gained. It tells of our problems and whence they came. We hope that in some small way it will prevent the same fate from falling on other such efforts... The Canadiana could have sailed again. We had the money. We had the experts. The Canadiana alas, was competition to the ruling class.
The court case against the New York State D.O.T. was lost on a technicality...
They said we took too long to sue...,
while ignoring precedent setting cases which allowed it.
Obviously we had to follow the letter of the law.., and then some,
while the tyranny of the State was not to be questioned.
We will be adding the book chapter by chapter, over the next week or so. As we touch it up for final viewing.
It is to be in PDF and instructions will be given as to how the book can be printed and then taken to Kinko's,
Office Max, etc. for them to bind for you.
The pages will remain as a tribute to the Canadiana,
and as a denouncement of
Mayor Masiello, the Buffalo News, the local NYSDOT,
and the many who will now profit
by *not* having a not-for-profit boat in the harbor.
The following is what was one of our pages before the Canadiana was lost.
The Canadiana can
tell of our past, increase tourism, promote jobs and economic
development, assist charities and give our children access to the lake,
to learn of its beauty and the reasons for it's protection. The
Canadiana is a jewel and it is all possible.
A quick look at how the Canadiana would be used.
Is the restoration possible? ~
Certainly... ~ It has been done before. Done by the very same people who
are in our group today. Done at the very same dry dock that the
Canadiana now sets next to. See the Toronto's Trillium on our
INDEX PAGE below. A dedicated group of individuals has spent more than a
decade in a tremendous effort to bring this beautiful and very historic
passenger steamship back into operation on the Great Lakes. ~ In the
process, a quarter of a million dollars in cash was raised through
contributions, member dues, events, and sales. ~ In addition; the
restoration has been assisted to an value well in excess of one million
dollars of contributed services, labor and materials. ~ Thousands of
people and hundreds of businesses have helped to bring back the
Canadiana.
We were
finally able to succeed. We had raised $150,000.00 as our share of the
total cost of the hull restoration. I.S.T.E.A. funding of 400,000.00 was
duly awarded to the Canadiana project. When we told them we had our
matching funds, they changed the rules. Two years after the award, the
NYSDOT arbitrarily made new rules and said we did not qualify anymore.
Scroll down and click on the INDEX link to read the "Letters" and much
more information regarding our fight to rightfully claim I.S.T.E.A.
funding that the Canadiana was duly awarded.
Space for
the S. S. Canadiana Home Page has been graciously donated by
This historic steam passenger
ship, built in Buffalo NY in 1910, can sail again as it did in the past.
~ Our web site is to tell the Internet, and through it all of North
America, of the effort. ~ The Canadiana is the last of her kind in many
ways. ~ She must not be allowed to sink into history but rather, she
must sail into the future. ~ The Canadiana is an important piece of our
heritage that can yet provide many grand benefits. ~ We thank you for
your interest and ask for your support.
Scroll down and click
on the index link for pictures and much more information.
If you have gone through the
links, you know it is not all smooth sailing. ~ A few see us as
competition and others have a "better" way (their way) to spend our
money. ~ We did expect this but were not ready for the extent to which
some would go nor how much their misdirected attitudes would affect us.
~ We need your support. ~ Write to NY Governor Pataki.
The NY D.O.T. is stealing our money when our effort is so close to
bearing fruit. ~ If you profess any interest at all in what the
Canadiana represents, please make an effort to do what you can.
