All but Forgotten: Early Measures for Maritime Safety on Canada’s West Coast
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25071/2561-5467.914Keywords:
Graveyard of the Pacific, maritime safety, life-saving measures, lighthouses, lifeboats, life-saving stationsAbstract
The exponential population growth and expansion of shipping from 1867 to 1914 in both British Columbia and the American Pacific Northwest led to marine disasters along the area known as “The Graveyard of the Pacific.” Despite repeated calls for improved marine safety measures from concerned Canadians and Americans, by the early twentieth century, this burgeoning Pacific Gateway remained completely devoid of any of the direct lifesaving measures that were then common-place on the shores of both the Atlantic coasts and Great Lakes. This paper will examine the development of local life-saving measures on Canada’s Pacific Gateway and Ottawa’s response to calls for greater support.
La croissance exponentielle de la population et l’expansion du transport maritime de 1867 à 1914 en Colombie-Britannique et dans le Nord-Ouest du Pacifique américain ont entraîné des catastrophes maritimes le long de la zone connue comme le « cimetière du Pacifique ». Bien que des Canadiens et des Américains inquiets se soient succéder à lancer des appels en faveur de l’amélioration des mesures de sécurité maritime, au début du 20e siècle, cette porte d’entrée du Pacifique en plein essor était complètement dépourvue des mesures directes nécessaires à la survie qui étaient alors communes sur la côte de l’Atlantique et le long des rives des Grands Lacs. Cet article étudie l’élaboration de mesures régionales visant à sauver des vies dans la porte d’entrée canadienne du Pacifique et la réaction d’Ottawa aux demandes d’un meilleur appui.
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