SS Prince Edward

SS Prince Edward

Prince Edward was built in Hull, England in 1897 by the Earle Shipbuilding company for the Dominion Atlantic Railway at a cost of $250,000. Her design was based on fast steamers in the English Channel service. She arrived in Yarmouth in August 1897, the first salvo in the DAR's foray for the lucrative Yarmouth - Boston service in competition with the more established Yarmouth Steamship Company. An article in an 1897 newspaper described many of her luxurious features. Prince Edward made her maiden voyage to considerable fanfare on September 8, 1897 reaching Boston in 23 hours to begin a twice a week service. While Prince Edward was fast, it soon became apparent that her design for the English Channel was not powerful enough for the longer passage and rougher waters across the Gulf of Maine, necessitating a series of minor repairs that disrupted service. The DAR bought two larger steamers, the SS Prince Arthur in 1898 and SS Prince George in 1898. Prince Edward was pulled for repairs and after brief service between Halifax and Yarmouth, she was removed from DAR service in 1900 and chartered to an American company, the Peninsula and Occidental Railway for service in US waters.

Gallery

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  Illustration from a 1897 newspaper article.

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  SS Prince Edward in Yarmouth at the DAR's Yarmouth Wharf, date unknown but probably taken soon after the steamer arrived in 1897.