Wreck of SS Daisy part of buried legacy
She hunted rum runners in Newfoundland, rescued tsunami victims and was built to last, says Halifax’s Harbour Watcher.
Mac Mackay has an affection for SS Daisy, the 106-year-old U.K.-built vessel that sits partially buried far from public view below the Angus L. MacDonald Bridge and along the Dartmouth shoreline.
It’s a rusted shell of its former self, but the Daisy refuses to go away. People continue to be drawn to it, wandering past the train tracks to the edge of the vacant four-acre piece of Halifax Regional Municipality-owned waterfront property.
“There’s a buried history all around the perimeter of Halifax harbour,” said the long-time Halifax marine blogger and retired architect. “It’s not what some might consider a thrilling piece of history, but it does offer a window into our industrial past.”
NEWFOUNDLAND CONNECTION
Before winding up in Dartmouth waters, the vessel was purchased by the Newfoundland government from the Royal Navy in 1912. Its original purpose was to patrol the south shore of Newfoundland for bootleggers. After a tsunami hit Burin in 1929, the vessel was called in to assist in rescue operations.
Halifax-owned J.P. Porter’s Co. Ltd. acquired the vessel in 1945 and used it as a tug boat for a few years before it was taken out of commission.
At the time, Porter’s was a bustling marine construction operation. The shore was gradually extended outward over time, burying several scows and ships, including the Daisy.
The site later turned into a scrap yard. The remnants of other long-ago vessels can be spotted nearby.
“There are probably a dozen ... ships and barges and things to form that area,” said Mackay. “It’s just kind of eroded away. Parts of the Daisy that were covered up for 20 years or more are now exposed because the fill was washed out around them.”
That it hasn’t completely disintegrated is a testament to the craftsmanship that went into the Daisy, said Mackay.
The British were the primary shipbuilders of the world back then and they built to last. The Daisy was made of mostly cast iron and steel, said Mackay.
“The way they build ships now, they don’t look anything like the Daisy. The construction was done with rivets because they didn’t have welding back then. They had to drill holes and drive rivets through the steel and iron.
“The material that they built with lasted a lot longer. If you were to have a ship buried there now and you looked at it 50 years later, there wouldn’t be as much to see.”
Mackay figures it would take considerable work to make the piece of property suitable for any kind of development.
“There are probably a lot of contaminates that no one wants to deal with. There’s a lot of stuff that is really nasty and hard to get rid of.”
Liberal MP Bernadette Jordan has campaigned to rid the province and country of abandoned vessels. She says she was unsure if the Daisywas on the list of 50 vessels slated to be removed in the province. A municipal councillor said the municipality has no plans to remediate the property, nor has it gotten complaints from residents interested in seeing it moved.
As far as the Daisy goes, Mackay figures it poses little threat to the environment and will eventually wear away to rust flakes.
In the meantime, he predicts more people will be drawn to the enigmatic artifact.
“There is a certain affection for it. When I was down there last, people had spray painted its name on there. It certainly has its charm.”