V. H. Ketchum approaching the lock, Sault Ste. Marie Canal National Historic Site

The first Superintendent, J. Boyd, made the transformations of the site from construction zone to a place of beauty one of his top priorities. As the city of Sault Ste. Marie grew during the early 20th century, people began visiting the canal for recreation.

When the Sault Ste. Marie Canal opened in 1895, it completed an all-Canadian waterway from Lake Superior to the Atlantic Ocean. During the first few years of operation, the average time to lock through was less than half the time of the American lock on the south side of the river. Within a few years the canal was handling three to four million tonnes of freight. 1913 was the busiest year, with almost 26 million tonnes of freight and 8,197 vessel passages.

This photo was taken before the extensive landscaping projects that were the finishing touches of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal. The V. H. Ketchum is in the lock near the Administration Building, while in the background the Superintendent’s Residence is clearly visible, with an expansive rocky ground surface extending almost as far as the eye can see. No trees had grown yet to provide privacy to the Residence as in later years. Lock workers on the side of the canal are handling lines from the ship in the lock, while two men in a horse-drawn cart look on.

The V.H. Ketchum was a Great Lakes steamer built in Marine City, Michigan and launched in 1874. The ship changed ownership several times over the ensuing years. In September of 1905 the Ketchum was en route from Duluth, Minnesota, to Cleveland, Ohio, being towed with a load of iron ore. A fire broke out while the ship was near Parisienne Island in the eastern end of Lake Superior. It beached on the island and burned to the water line. Two of the nine crew on board perished when the boat capsized and sank.