Wheelhouse Maritime Museum facts for kids

The Wheelhouse Maritime Museum (WMM) was a special place in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was like a treasure chest filled with items from ships and the sea. It opened its doors on February 1, 1965. The museum was started by a group called the Underwater Society of Ottawa. You could visit the museum on Sunday afternoons and some evenings during the week. It was located on the top floor of a building at 218 Cumberland Street in Ottawa. The museum welcomed visitors from 1965 until it closed in 1976.

A Look Back: How the Museum Started

In February 1963, the Underwater Society of Ottawa began an exciting project. They started looking for old shipwrecks in the National Capital Commission area. This was part of a big project for Canada's 100th birthday, called the Canadian Centennial.

At first, the Underwater Society of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission thought about having a special part of the Bytown Museum just for Ottawa River boats. Andre Lamirande led a team of 18 divers for this search.

The Wheelhouse Maritime Museum was the Underwater Society of Ottawa's gift to the Canadian Centennial. The museum's collection came from the Underwater Society of Ottawa's own findings, which they had been gathering since February 1964. The museum was paid for by the society's members and was free for everyone to visit from 1965 to 1976.

Andre Lamirande was the director of the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum. He and Jean Trudel were the curators, which means they took care of the museum's collection. Andre Lamirande was also one of the people who started the Underwater Society of Ottawa, along with James Miller, Richard Desjardins, and five others.

What the Museum Wanted to Do

The Wheelhouse Maritime Museum had several important goals:

• To find, keep, and show items related to boat history in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. This included shipping and building boats.
• To create a special area for new exhibits.
• To get people involved in museum events and activities.
• To build a library of old papers, books, and other items about marine history.
• To let students, researchers, and historians study marine history at the museum.
• To create fun and educational programs.

A group of expert historians and archaeologists also helped the museum by giving advice.

The Underwater Society of Ottawa's Discoveries

The Underwater Society of Ottawa was very busy! From 1964 to 1976, they found and listed 197 shipwrecks in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. They mostly looked for old paddle-wheel boats and schooners that sank between 1809 and 1921. But they found other types of ships too.

For example, they found a warship that the British burned during the War of 1812. This was discovered in Shanks Harbor in the United States. They also found items from the "Atlantic," a big ship that sank off the Marshead, Nova Scotia coast in April 1873. These items included a tile from the ship's stairs and a heavy "dead eye," which was used to hold ropes on the ship's mast.

The Underwater Society kept many books filled with facts, reports, drawings, and photos of the shipwrecks. They found wrecks in the St. Lawrence River (from Lake St. Francis to Kingston, Ontario), the Rideau Canal, and the Ottawa River (from Montreal, Quebec to Lake Timiskaming). They also explored many smaller rivers and lakes.

Treasures from the Deep

The items they found were amazing! They included:

• Old bottles with labels like "Old Power Scotch Whisky" and "Ushers Green Stripe."
• Dinner plates with boat names on them.
• A 39-inch telescope.
• Many small clay pipes.
• A shoe with a strange cut-out area around the big toe.
• One-penny gold coins from Mayors Store in Ottawa.
• A bottle labeled "For teeth and breath."

From the S.S. Rothesay, found in the St. Lawrence River, they salvaged items like fancy china, a spittoon (a bowl for spitting), a ceramic jug, and an iron frying pan.

All these findings were carefully cleaned and kept safe. Mr. Lamirande explained their process: "We never cut or tear anything from a wreck until we draw an exact picture of the ship. Once we know what it is, we clean it carefully with chemicals or a wire brush. After rust is gone, we cover it with a plastic-like coating. This coating can be removed later for more study."

At the end of each diving season, they sent a list of their discoveries to the right people. Once the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum was officially recognized (from 1965 to 1976), they were allowed to keep all the items they found.

What You Could See at the Museum

At the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum, the items were neatly displayed on pegboards. Small notes with their history were taped underneath. You could see chains, valves, gauges, axe heads, hinges, propellers, and even steering wheels!

Items found in the Ottawa River included china, bottles, and a special toilet made in 1859. Other exhibits from wrecks in the St Lawrence River included a pulley from the schooner "Marion," which sank in 1869.

One of the biggest items in the museum was a part of the oak hull from the Lady Colborne. This boat was built in 1832 on Lake Deschenes. It burned and sank in 1845 in Britannia Bay. The museum also had pieces of wood from the French ship l'Outaouais. This ship was sunk by the British near Carleton Island in the 1760s.

Museum Friends and Partners

The Wheelhouse Maritime Museum worked with several other groups, including the Canadian Museums Association, the Bytown Museum, and the Canadian Museum of Science and Technology. They also worked with the Santa Maria Society.

In August 1982, a special underwater diving park was opened in Ottawa. It was opened by Transport Minister Jean-Luke Pepin. At first, only divers and researchers could visit this park. But the Santa Monica Society hoped to open it to everyone in the future. In 1982, Frank Martin from the Santa Maria Society moved an old 19th-century steamer called the Bruce to a special underwater spot near the Ottawa Rowing Club. Seven ships were planned for this park, including the William King, Ivy, Otter, Resolute, Maggie Bell, Mansfield, and the Bruce.

The Museum's Story Continues

The Wheelhouse Maritime Museum needed more money and a bigger space for its large collection. "Our biggest problem is not getting enough money from outside," said Mr. Lamirande. "Most of our members have average salaries, and it's getting harder to pay for everything."

Because of this lack of funding, the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum closed its doors to the public in 1976. Its huge 14-ton collection was then moved to the Canadian Museum of Science and Technology. It stayed there from 1976 to 1990.

Even after closing, the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum continued to be active. They built small models of ships and published a book in 1982 called 'A Foregone Fleet: A Pictorial History of Steam-Driven Paddleboats on the Ottawa River'. On June 12, 1983, the Wheelhouse Maritime Museum gave a presentation about commercial boating in the Ottawa Valley at the Billings Estate Museum.

By 1990, a decision was made to move the collection again. It went from the Museum of Science and Technology in Ottawa to the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in Kingston. The Ottawa Chapter of Save Ontario Shipwrecks carefully recorded and photographed hundreds of items. They noted that some items were getting damaged in the warehouses. So, they made sure everything was properly wrapped and stored before being sent to the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes, where they are kept today.

See also

• List of shipwrecks in the Great Lakes
• List of shipwrecks of Canada