AN EPIC TALE

The history of the S. S. Bigwin is a storied one. Built by Polson Iron Works in Toronto, she was purchased by the Huntsville & Lake of Bays Navigation Company in 1925 from a private owner. The S.S. Bigwin was registered in the British ship registry with official number 125835. She is 66′ in length, 6′ in depth, with an 11′ 8″ beam and a registered weight of 25 tons. 

When the ship arrived on Lake of Bays, she joined the other wooden steamships that were in the vital transport service on Muskoka’s waterways. After a few years, the S.S. Bigwin was transferred to the Bigwin Inn Boat Livery and she became the hardest worker for the inn, ferrying guests (many famous) to the Bigwin Island Resort; one of the most spectacular summer destinations in North America at the time.

With the decline of the resort more than half a century ago, the SS Bigwin fell into disrepair. After years of neglect, the boat sat partially submerged on the bottom of her slip at Bigwin Inn.

THE RESTORATION

A coalition of Lake of Bays cottagers, residents and organizations conducted a massive fundraising and restoration project to return this precious part of lost heritage for residents and visitors to Lake of Bays.

In 1991, the SS Bigwin was purchased and after considerable volunteer effort, she was raised and floated to dry dock in South Portage with the assistance of the Dwight Fire Department. In 2002, the restoration began on a property in Port Cunnington.

In 2004, the Lake of Bays Marine Museum and Navigation Society purchased the old Clayton property in Dorset, Ontario as a location for the restoration to continue. It now serves as a permanent docking facility.

On Saturday November 17th, 2012, at approximately 10:30 am, the S. S. Bigwin set sail on Lake of Bays and passed its preliminary engine tests. The ship relaunched officially in July 2013 and continues to serve and delight, as the only historic commercial ship on Lake of Bays.