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New Boat on the Pond

 

 

F.M. Yorke

 

All steel 70 foot tug built in Tacoma Washington, 1943 as the U.S. Army harbor tug S.T. 13.

Bought in 1947 for $ US 47K by Greg Yorke for the F.M. Yorke & Son Co. Sank 5:55 A.M. April 5, 1948 after grounding on the rocky shore of Stick Point in Howe Sound 7 KM south of Woodfibre. Was pushed off the rocks by its tow a few minutes later and sank to 800 feet. Was deemed unrecoverable and the $ CAN 100K insurance was paid.

Of the seven man crew, second engineer John Skog drowned.

 

Francis Marie (Frank) Yorke was born in Galway Ireland 1858. He spent much of his young years as the guest of the Master of several sailing ships visiting ports all over the globe. The Master of these ships was first his father then two step fathers.  Came to Victoria in 1879 and worked as a longshoreman, stevedore and entrepreneur.

 

Founded the company F M Yorke & Son as a partnership with his son Greg in 1921. The vessels of the company could be seen about the Salish Sea for the next fifty years. The company pulled rail car barges, later combining semi- trailers with rail.

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Sold to Seaspan in 1972, the major vessels were renamed keeping part of their Yorke names. The tug Lorne Yorke became Seaspan Lorne. The self-propelled rail/truck barge Greg Yorke became Seaspan Greg. The twin decked self-propelled rail/truck barge Doris Yorke became Seaspan Doris.

 

To the best of my knowledge two vessels once part of the Yorke fleet are still working. The Seaspan Greg and an all wood 1945 tug C. P. Yorke was last outfitted as a diving support vessel.

 

The boat is a 1/48 scale, first effort.

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Paul Yorke

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