Story
This misc. was built in 1916 by Johnson Brothers & Blanchard in Seattle, WA.
Historical Notes
On July 27, 1919, while bound for Ketchikan Alaska from Seattle under Captain H.J. Allen, with a crago of cannery supplies this vessel caught fire off Sand Heads (at the mouth of the Fraser River). The when a fuel oil line broke the fire started in the engine room and in a short time the whole vessel was in flames. A Marine Fireman, B. Neilson, was badly burned. The Princess Victoria rescued her crew off the mouth of the Fraser River. Even after this vessel was abandoned the Admiral Knight was steaming under her own power in a wide circle. Eventually the boilers exploded. This vessel later sank at Cable Bay, Galiano Island BC Canada. An unanticipated consequence of the sinking was the fouling of swimming beaches in Vancouver with oil making them temporarily unusable.
Owners & Masters
In 1918-1919 she was owned by the Pacific Steamship Co.
Name Significance
Austin Melvin Knight was a USN admiral. He was commander in chief of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet from 1917 to 1918. His 1901 textbook Modern Seamanship was a standard reference for over eight decades.
Repower
By 1917 shows having steam propulsion of 300 HP. The original entry might be a mistake.
References
- Transportation Safety Board of Canada (1993)
- Canada List of Shipping
- Rogers, A.C. (Jr.) Shipwreck Chart No. 1
- List of Shipping Casualties Resulting in Total Loss in British Columbia and Coastal Waters Since 1897 (undated manuscript document)
- The Victoria Daily Times Monday July 28, 1919 page 19
- The Province (Vancouver BC) Monday July 28, 1919 page 7
- Brown, Giles T. (1966) Ships That Sail No More. Univ. Kentucky Press
- Merchant Vessels of the United States (1920)
