The Refiting of the Silver Ann
A little history on Silver Ann and its refit at Britannia Shipyard,
almost 40 years after it was launched by the same shipyard.
The Silver Ann, a 35-foot wooden gillnetter, worked hard fishing off the West Coast of British Columbia. She was the last boat to be constucted by Britanna Shipyard. The Silver Ann was launched in 1968-69 and was built for George Osaka as a a river gillnetter. John Willkinson was her last owner. The Silver Ann signified the end of an era for the Britannia Shipyard. She was the very last boat built on the site and when launched, 60 years of boat-building history was launched with it.
Some years ago, while tied up at the docks, a electrical fire caused her pumps to shut down and she filled with water and sunk, but was later refloated. In November 2001, she was aquired by the City of Richmond and is now getting a complete refit by two shipwrights and a handful of volunteers. They are using the same techniques and tools that Sadajiro Asari used in 1968 when he built the boat for Richmond fisherman, George Osaka. This refit is taking place at Britannia Shipyard, in an approximately 100-foot-long building, which has a sign on it that says "Richmond Boatworks." The Britannia Shipyard is located in Steveston's Britannia Heritage Shipyard Park, situated on 3.3 hectacres (8.14 acres) of land located along the Steveston Channel of the south arm of the Fraser River. The site is a rare surviving example of a once thriving mixture of canneries, boatyards and residences. Many of these buildings date back to 1885 and tell many stories about the multi-ethnic residents and workers at the Britannia Cannery and Britannia Shipyard: Chinese, European, First Nations and Japanese.
©Frank Dawson—Shipwrights and volunteers working hard to bring Silver Ann back to her former glory.
To see how the Silver Ann refit is progressing, you may want to visit the park, or get more information on the Britannia Heritage Shipyard Park website. Visit Britannia Heritage Shipyard National Historic Site of Canada, one of two NHS in Steveston, at 5180 Westwater Drive, Richmond, BC V7E 6P3. Tel: 604-718-8050. Wheelchair accessible.
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