Penticton's SS Sicamous will be celebrating it's 111th birthday next weekend

Celebrate big ship's bday

Photo: S.S. Sicamous Marine Heritage Society

On Sunday, May 18, the SS Sicamous will be celebrating it's 111th birthday from noon to 4 p.m. and the entire community is invited.

The SS Sicamous Marine Heritage Society is ready to throw a big community party to celebrate the big ship's 111th birthday.

On Sunday, May 18th, the museum will host games, live music and tours of the SS Sicamous from noon to 4 p.m.

The piece of Canadian history was the last luxury sternwheeler built in Canada, assembled at Okanagan Landing shipyards and launched in 1914 on Okanagan Lake.

The ship was used to provide lake transportation with round trips between Vernon and Penticton, with as many as fourteen stops in between the two cities.

"There were no highways back then so travel over water was the only way to go in those days," Chris Morris, the society's events and community engagement coordinator said.

"She linked the communities along the lake and aided the development of the valley by providing transportation for passengers, the mail and cargo, especially fruit."

The ship's first voyage didn't go off without a hitch, as she got stuck in the shallow water upon being launched into the bay.

"Two other sternwheelers had to team up to pull her out."

At more than 200 feet in length and 40 feet wide, the ship could carry 500 passengers and 900 tons of freight.

The Sicamous helped transport soldiers as they were off to World War I in 1914, and welcomed the Prince of Wales, helping take him up the lake during a visit to the Okanagan Valley in 1919.

"On a normal day, the Sicamous set out at 5:30 a.m from Penticton, arriving in Kelowna around 9 a.m., and then Okanagan Landing (the northern point of the lake) by 12 noon," the society shared.

"There she dispersed her cargo, loaded the coal needed to power the Sicamous, and took on new cargo and passengers. By day's end and to 14 stops later, the Sicamous returned home to Penticton about 8 p.m."

By the depression era, the expanding railways and the building of roads for automobiles all resulted in fewer passengers, and the Sicamous was removed from CPR service in 1931, then reinstated as a freight barge for four more years.

"In 1935, the Sicamous finally retired, though she made one last special trip in 1937 for the Gyro Club," the society said. "The SS Sicamous is the largest surviving sternwheeler in British Columbia."

The ship, which has been fully restored, operates as a museum through the warmer months and as a venue open for rental for weddings, concerts and events.

Guests are invited to come out on May 18 to explore the entire vessel, and learn more about this important chapter in local history.

Photo: S.S. Sicamous Marine Heritage Society

The SS Sicamous 111th Birthday party on Sunday, May 18th 12pm to 4pm