Ship Details

Fleetwood (III)

Vessel image

Photo Credit: John M. MacFarlane

 
 
Registry #1 156889 (Canada) Registry #2 Registry #3
IMO# MMSI# VRN#
 
Name 1 1930 Skeezix (II) Name 6
Name 2 1941c Fleetwood (III) Name 7
Name 3 Name 8
Name 4 Name 9
Name 5 Name 10
 
Year Built 1930 Place Vancouver Area BC Country Canada
 
Designer (nk) Measurement (imp) 56.5' x 12.1' x 6.0'
Builder Vancouver Shipyards Ltd. Measurement (metric) 17.22m x 3.69m x 1.83m
Hull Wood Displacement
Gross Tonnage 31.51 Type 1 Yacht, power-cruiser
Registered Tonnage 18.22 Type 2
Engine 15hp engine (1930); Engine Manufacture (nk)
Repower 80hp engine (1961c); Propulsion Screw
Rebuilds Call Sign
Pendant  # Masters
 
Owner(s)
In 1930-1931 she was owned by Pacific and Foreign Navigation Co. Ltd., Vancouver BC Canada. (This company was owned by the Reifel Family). In the 1930s the vessel was owned by Lesley Ashton, Vancouver BC Canada. In 1949-1966 she was owned by Jacob W. Cohen, Vancouver BC Canada. In 1967-1972 she was owned by John B. Buchanan, Vancouver BC Canada. In 1973-1975 she was owned by Norm Perron (MO), Qualicum Beach BC Canada. In 1976-2001 she was owned by Robert Turnbull, Edmonton AB Canada. In 2004-2015 she was owned by Britannia Heritage Shipyard Society, Richmond BC Canada. In 2017-2022 she was owned by the City of Richmond, Richmond BC Canada.
 
Fate Museum collection Date 0000-00-00
 
Named Features
Significance of Name She was named after a popular newspaper cartoon character from Gasoline Alley. The baby character, was named Skeezix (cowboy slang for a motherless calf).
 
Anecdotes
In her early days this vessel was operated as a rumrunner. (Miles, Fraser (1992)). Brian Fraser writes: "it was initially launched with not only a powerful diesel engine [capacity unknown to me at this point] but also two 450 hp Liberty [aircraft] gas engines, an arrangement not uncommon for such boats. It appears that the Reifel family used a portion of the Fraser estuary that they owned to harbour the Skeezix for its rum running operations into Puget Sound, and that a large portion of these holdings eventually were converted into the Reifel Bird Sanctuary." Eduard B. Wall (Email to Nauticapedia 22/04/2019) states that "This vessel now has been located located at Britannia Heritage Park in the Richmond Boat builders compound for a number of years now,. Although there have been several proposals as to her future, the current owner, the City of Richmond has not been able to make a plan for her future. This is a valuable heritage vessel with an interesting British Columbia history and hopefully Richmond will create a plan to restore and display her." In 2022 this vessel is now dryberthed and on public display.
 
References
Canada List of Shipping; Harbour & Shipping (Progress Publishing Co. Ltd.) Vol. 13 (1930); Miles, Fraser (1992); Personal Email Brian Fraser - Nauticapedia 03/07/2015);
Last update
 

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