Princeton Public Library

Description

In 1853 the Schoodic Lake Steamboat Corp. (Schodiac) built the first steamboat, the Captain Lewy, to be used for logging in Princeton. The steamboat corporation was owned by mill operators and lumber merchants, but a few shares of stock were sold to the people of Princeton at a rate of $20 par.

Eventually George F. Todd became sole owner of the Captain Lewy. Todd then sold it to Henry McAllister who operated it for many years. The Captain Lewy was named in honor of a well-liked Passamaquoddy Native American of the Princeton area who was hired to navigate the boat due to his experience and knowledge of the waters and natural channels.

The steamer was flat-bottomed with no keel, measured approximately 110 feet long, and only drew two feet of water. The boiler was "as big as a car" and was fired by wood. It contained a dining area and bunks for the crew. The steamboat was used to haul log booms across Big Lake from work sites to an area near the mills. As logs became fewer, the Captain Lewy would haul logs all the way to the bridge in Princeton.

Around 1920 it was no longer profitable to use the Captain Lewy to move the logs. It was then sunk, engines and all, in Greenland Cove, on Long Lake where it's remains can still be seen today.

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