Devastated does not begin to describe our feelings.
As the SS Keewatin is tugged away from her home, the Keep Keewatin Home team hold our heads up high with the knowledge that we tried everything we could to keep her.
We met with lawyers, professional fundraisers, communication specialists, local politicians, federal and provincial politicians, community organizations, and government officials. We knocked on every door and left no stone unturned in our campaign to keep this beautiful ship where she belongs.
On behalf of our team, which numbered over 20 at times, but with a dedicated few from whom the campaign became almost a second career, we offer our heartfelt thanks to all those who put their faith in us to save the ship. We put our blood, sweat, and lots and lots of tears into the effort, but we still fell short.
There has been a lot of discussion on social media recently and certain people close to the ship offering the excuse that lack of community support and/or lack of visitors is what lost Port McNicoll the ship.
This, however, is a comfortable narrative both by and for the architects of the transfer to Kingston. The reality is that at any time – and with the stroke of a pen – Skyline Investments could have transferred ownership of the ship to a local heritage group or charity, as they promised in 2012, but they categorically refused to do so.
Finding ways to fight a large corporation and its collaborators has been a frustrating task, made even harder when the cries of our 15,000 supporters fell on the deaf ears of the government at both the federal and provincial level.
For Skyline, the multi-million-dollar tax receipt for donation to Kingston precluded real consideration of any other alternative, and some involved with the transfer now stand to benefit substantially from this arrangement.
Over the last 10 years, Skyline sought and received financial, professional, and volunteer contributions for the Kee and support for their project from our community. Any insinuation that the ship suffered from a lack of local support is insulting; greed is what lost Port McNicoll the Keewatin.
Although we have serious concerns about the ship during its transport, we trust that the proper surveys and proper work has been done to ensure that she will make it safely to Kingston.
Once there, we have every faith that the Kingston Marine Museum will do an excellent job with her care and curation over the coming years. We wish them well, and we offer our support for their time as hosts of the vessel until the day comes – however far off that may be – when she returns to her rightful home again in Port McNicoll.
So, what does a post-Keewatin Port McNicoll look like?
Our community is strong, it is resilient, it has physical and heritage assets that no other place has. As the Elgin Marbles may reside in the British Museum but their story will always remain in Athens, so too the story of the SS Keewatin will always remain in Port.
Our team is still very much involved in the community - committed to working with organizations, developers, and government at all levels on new projects to ensure the promises that were made when the Keewatin arrived – of prosperity, of tourism, of culture and heritage – are kept.
There are a lot of people, politicians, and organizations that owe Port McNicoll for this, and we intend to make sure it collects.
For now, we wish to thank all our supporters – everyone who signed the petitions, planted a sign in their yard or window, made a donation, and came to one of our events – your support was our strength, and the huge amount of support from across Simcoe County was incredible.
The legacy of Keewatin during its time at home again in Port McNicoll is one of love, of labour, and of community, and for that we thank all of you.
Dan Travers is a college professor and the author of two books on public history. Involved with numerous community organizations in North Simcoe, he is a proud resident of Port McNicoll.
