River Palace

Submitted by dmacdonell on Sun, 2009-10-04 14:59

River Palace

By Walter Lewis and Rick Neilson

978-1-55002-793-8
August 2008
256pp, Paperback
$25.99 CAD

Shelve it

If you are looking for a superb historical account of a little known area in Canadian history, this is a must read. It's history, but it is also good storytelling.

Shelf Life

Kingston's Neilson and fellow diver and historian Walter Lewis have penned The River Palace (Dundurn) about this merchant ship...

River Palace

...the authors approach their subject with an interesting mix of skills and deep knowledge of the artifacts and archival material, which they use to animate the work...

The Northern Mariner

...well illustrated, The River Palace captures an era when transportation on water was the dominant way to travel...

The New Tanner

Steamboats carrying passengers from Hamilton to Montreal via the rapids of the St. Lawrence were a popular sight in the latter half of the nineteenth century. In 1855, the Kingston, an iron steamboat built for John Hamilton, appeared in the Great Lakes. When the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) toured British North America in 1860, the Kingston became his floating palace for much of his time between Quebec and Toronto. While many steamboats claimed to be floating palaces, the Kingston truly was one.

In 1855, the Kingston, an iron steamboat built for John Hamilton (1802-82), appeared in the Great Lakes. When the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) came to British North America for the first royal tour in 1860, the Kingston became his floating palace for much of his time between Quebec and Toronto. Many steamboats claimed to be floating palaces. The Kingston was.

The Kingston was wrecked many times and survived spectacular fires in 1872 and 1873. Late in her career, she was converted into a salvage vessel and renamed the Cornwall. In 1930 she was finally taken out and sunk near one of Kingston’s ship graveyards. There she remained until diver Rick Neilson discovered her in 1989. Today, the once palatial Kingston is a popular dive site and tourist attraction.