Ship AMERICAN VICTORY Final Voyage on the Welland Canal 

Thanks. I feel the same way.

I empathize with your feelings. Ideally, she would have become a museum and could have told her story of both wartime service and lake service. And in that ideal world, ten of thousands would have flocked to visit her every year. But the sad reality is that it's tough going for the museum ships that currently exist on the Great Lakes. There are museum ships in Duluth, Superior, Cleveland, Toledo, and Sault Ste. Marie... and none of those are particularly raking in the cash. Plus, the upkeep costs on these ships is extensive. I'd love to see the Edward Ryerson and Arthur Anderson become museums once their days of hauling are over (which may already be the case for the Ryerson). But that will depend on whether there are any cities in the Great Lakes that can support hosting one of these ships as a museum. In the end, I think we'll be lucky to retain the few museum ships we already have.

Thank you very much. I appreciate that. My intent in my small way was to document this once-in-a lifetime event, so that others in the future could just see a small part of this shp's last voyage, to see how it was, how it looked.

Long, and VERY well-deserved.

I never actually knew this stuff, let alone did I even know much about the ship before!

shes one tough boat not built for comfort i guess

Thats awesome, you have a lot of great detail, very interesting! Well done!!

Thank you very much for the information. I was wondering the history of the ship while watching the video only guessing the she has the typical structure of he great lakes cargo vessels.

Armco steel was actually in Hamilton Ohio one town north of Middletown.

Amazing! Such workhorse vessels!

In fact so old, that it is older than the ship that is being being lead to it’s doom by said tug

Presumably it is the Tug hull that is 85 years old, surely the engine(s) must have been replaced at least once in that time.

2nd generation of crew on her now

@@TheMNrailfan227 prob because she is out of date. not seaworthy; cranky

look again the bow was reinforced behind the tow pin with a plate probably a metre sq on each side

Because they don't need it anymore and there are bigger more useful ships. That's just the way it goes. Not to mention she was still under steam

All ships even Icond, come to the end of their useful lives since there were mo groups who wanted to turn her into a museum, she goes to scrap

I agree, that would have been a very apt name...

Hi. She had a major overhaul when she became the Pioneer Challenger; but I believe that the bow, pilothouse and stern are the originals from Neshanic, and the mid section is from the tanker-to-laker conversion.{ Interestingly, I also heard that until the end, she was still a steam-powered ship. I hope someone out there can corroborate that!}

Probably caused by a hit and miss propellor blade ...

Très triste!!!

I don't think they have scrapped any of the 1000 footer's yet.

I agree. I'm also in the trucking buisness, and along with smaller carrying capacity, most likely she was not fuel efficient, and took up more in maintenance and repairs. Would have been nice to see these ships run smaller shorter routes maybe. But I guess that's not the way this industry works. Just so sad to see a workhorse with such a bright history go to the salvage yards

Sadly the ojibway(formerly maritime trader,voyager independent)is also now going to the torch she was completely refitted mid 2000s(I was part of that project at heddle marine services in Hamilton)but without self unloading capabilities and lack of size its demise was expected

Yes - today's Evans McKeil was built in 1936 as the Alhajuela - see: gltugs.wordpress.com/evans-mckeil/

Hi Jan: Neshanic, T3-S-A1 launched as Marquette AO 71 USN (www.usmm.org/tankers.html) Also see:: (shipbuildinghistory.com/merchantships/2t3tankers.htm )

@@RightInNiagara Thanks for info. Sure, it needed some more repair than just metalocking the gap in the prop blade, Even so it's a shame that this old lady with so much history had to go this way!

No, they're going as far as Montreal or Quebec City. Vac stay is still tied up below lock 1.

Yes, Victory is going to be towed to Turkey, just by other tugs. Towing ships across the Atlantic to Turkey for scrapping has now become a routine procedure.

Apparently it's for legal purposes to create a final name on the ship's registry for the tow name. Usually, they just try to make some shorter name out of the last name ('Victo' out of Victory, in this case); other times they just put on some completely different name.

She had served with honour during WW2 as the USS NESHANIC (AO-71) "AO-71" can be briefly seen at 06:44 and 07:21, painted on the outside of the white (port-side) balcony at the pilothouse level.

pourquoi parler de monstre alors qu'il s'agit plutôt d'une vieille dame , et donc soyez plus respectueux des anciens comme on le dit chez nous en France ...

There is no working propulsion or rudder control on the towed ship. The tugs are doing all the work.

RightInNiagara 😮

Hi. I asked another commenter, Ryan W, and he confirmed it was still a steamer!

RightInNiagara : thanks, hopefully the Turks will save it but who knows.

on her way to a Turkish scrapyard

Michel Gosselin NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Unfortunately she is being axed.

sad to break it to ya but yeah she is :-( i cried when i saw her leave Duluth for the last time

I read on. Sorry I see she was towed across the Atlantic but still seems a waste. American ship and we r buying her scrap back. But I guess she’s worth more on the global market

Hi... no problem! As you see, the ship was actually seaworthy enough to be towed to Turkey. She has by now most likely been fully dismantled. This had been a US ship until quite recently, but it had been sold by the previous US owners (along with some other ships) to a Canadian company, which then selected which ships they wanted to keep.That's how it played out. The question of why these ships aren't being dismantled in North America is hard to answer. Some are dismantled here in Ontario, at the MRC site in Port Colborne, on Lake Erie; but they can only handle so much. And your question about the name change for the tow, has to do with the ship's registry/ current owners/insurance etc. being closed and set up under a final name (usually a strange derivative of the ship's previous name) for the tow.

Thanks for ur time and the info. Since the ship is Canadian at that time of scrapping it makes sense. As well as the fact that scrapping is available but limited.

age, hull is it in good shape? does it leak. dry docking maintenance fees and size what kind of engines can she take; max engine size

It costs a lost of money to restore and repurposed a ship, it's better business to sell it for scrape. Lets face it, very few ships will survive after their service lifespan runs out. Especially something like a old tanker ship. Maybe a old ocean cruise liner like the Queen Mary, maybe they'll have a slight chance to get repurposed. People still hold out hope that maybe some day they'll find some use for the S.S United States. But a old tanker ship? Sorry but I honestly don't think enough people care. Most just see it as a rusty old cargo boat. When it's very rare for even retro luxury ships to find new life, a retro cargo ship got virtually no chance.

Well... there''s one at Port Colborne, the Marine Recycling Corp. yard... the Victo tow team stopped overnight in Port Colborne, right beside the MRC yard. But the contract was with the Turkish yard, not them. You'd have to call MRC or Algoma about why. MRC probably was booked solid with other scrap ships. Why didn't any U.S yard bother to do the dismantling I wonder?

@@RightInNiagara A guess would be that Turkey probably has more of a market for the scrap, so rather than cut her up here, then transport the scrap there, just sail the ship there to start with. Just a guess.

Also, I wonder how stringent the ''environmental' regulations are there as opposed to N.America? One would think that dozens of yards would be begging for such work, yet it's -literally - shipped out overseas. I read some news report that the scrap value of Victo after dismantling could have been about $3 million US {don't know if this can be corroborated} But even that (apparently?) isn't enough return to entice N.American bidders to carry out the job. Aren''t there any capable Great Lakes yards, near Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago etc??!

Even Mexico didn't want to do it...

And Turkey is all but one of our worst enemies even though it is claimed to be an ally. It would have been better if this grand old ship had just rolled over and sank on her way across rather than allow Turkey to benefit from her demise.

The purpose of the tow was to get the ship from the Great Lakes to Turkey

83발견 😑😑😑😒😒😒

do dat...

Archimedes' principle.

Ever look in the toilet?

In summary, the Welland Canal is in Ontario, Canada; it connects Port Colborne on Lake Erie, to Port Weller, on Lake Ontario. it is part of the St. Lawrence Seaway system, allowing ships direct access from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, bypassing Niagara Falls.

@@RightInNiagara Learn something new every day. Thank you.

Tim Mckeil had both flags on its tall mast; Evans just the Canadian, and Vac had a Canadian one (you can barely see it at 17:09). Victo had a Canadian one at the aft; and a US one above the pilothouse. I'm not sure what the protocol here ought to be. Should the Canadian flag have been atop Victo in these circumstances? If a vessel is being towed, does it even need a flag, as long as the tow vessel already has two flags? Is the flying of the Canadian flag on the canal a requirement or only a courtesy?? Maybe someone out there can clarify these things!

@Rian Washington I am wondering if Middleton was still steam powered, or was the engine updated at some point?

@Rian Washington Thanks; other viewers were asking about this as well. Good to know!

There are no little trucks that tow any ships on the Welland Canal. And, who knows what condition the ship's propulsion system was in, let alone any other issues What front engine azipod are you referring to - do you mean the side thrusters? Those are not meant for full time propulsion!

@@RightInNiagara The side thrusts were meant to help turn the ship in tight turns such as the canal has. All locks have those little trucks that pull the ship thru the lock that is what that long concrete road is beside the lock ////. Even rebuilding one engine and I doubt they'd even have to do that, would of gotten the ship thru the canal with perhaps one tug and with some ballast and slow turns of the prop getting the ship to where it was going on it's final journey. It is my contention that the maritime commission made them have 3 tugs do to the weight of the ship and possible winds, but in my opinion it was over kill and the ship could have made it on it's own.

Sorry: please understand, there are NO trucks of ANY KIND which pull any ships, anywhere on the Welland Canal. The commission you refer to, in this case is the St.Lawrence Seaway Authority, whose longstanding policy is that ships must have working engines, or be towed by tugboats (not trucks!) along the canal. Sailboats CANNOT transit the Welland Canal under sail, only if they have an engine. The issue here is not getting thru the canal with one engine: why would that even be attempted, anyway, since the issue is that the ship was being TOWED TO TURKEY?! The ship's fitness may have been compromised on many other mechanical fronts - not just the engine. And: who would pay for the rebuilding of one engine on this ship, just to supposedly get her through the Welland Canal? And - WHY would anyone do this kind of MacGyvering , anyhow, when the entire journey also includes crossing the Atlantic!?! The ship would have to be 100% seaworthy to do this on her own. You may speculate that Victo could have gotten to Turkey on her own, but clearly, there were engineering issues that precluded this from happening, The Seaway Authority requires that all ships - including American Victory - have to be fully seaworthy - not partially seaworthy - to transit the Welland Canal on their own power. If they are not deemed fit, they will require tow tug assistance to get through. There is no conspiracy here; no overkill. Scrap tows have been done this way on the Welland Canal for decades.This is standard procedure, nothing out of the ordinary. And, I am quite familiar with what a propeller does, what a rudder does, and what side thrusters are for.... but you mentioned that there was an Azipod system on the Victo: where do you see it?

@@RightInNiagara Obviously the guy does not understand how the Lakers work. No azipods, only bow thrusters, and as a former sailor on those ships I believe I saw smoke coming from the thruster diesel, so that was still operating. No way the ship is worth fitting out when the decision has been made to scrap it. I sure would love to have a portlight and one of those lifeboats though! Those ships had some beautiful desks and I hope someone got the bell and the wheel!

Hi. Regarding the various mementos and relics, I can only assume that the previous US owners or some local historical society would have taken some of these items if they had historical value: after all, this ship (at least part of it when she was the Neshanic) saw actual WW2 combat. So, that is to be respected. But, this ship had sat idle for several years, so i don't know what had been done previously. I do understand that there was a large crane boom that had been removed before the tow, so, other parts may have been as well I am glad you mentioned the smoke (it is seen at 01:27 and 01:52) That is not smoke coming from any ship engine, although strangely, it looks like it. That was actually was smoke coming from a portable generator that had been set up by the tow crew behind the pilothouse to give some power for lighting / bilge pumps / radios etc. That ship had no working propulsion at all - the tugs did ALL the work! Even the generators were dead - so, you can imagine what kind of other problems there were!!

..Если старый корабль не побежден, то его дух, имя и слава переходят в новый корпус...

McKeil's website says VAC has a 1,000 HP, triple-screw engine, but not what type it is! See: mckeil.com/our-fleet/vac

More on the history and the specifications of the tug VAC at gltugs.wordpress.com/vac/ when she was still owned by Nadro. It's interesting to note that the tug VAC is the same age as the ship she was helping tow: both were built in 1942! "The fish tug Vac was built in 1942 by Harry Gamble of Port Dover, Ontario for George A. Clark. In 1962, the Vac was sold to Peter Minor. She went to Dan Minor in 1969. In 1974, she was acquired by Valley Brook Fish Farms. Great Lakes Marine Contracting purchased the Vacin 1976, and in 1981 she was converted from a fish tug to a towing vessel. She was eventually acquired by Nadro Marine of Port Dover.Vac is used for towing, ship docking, and icebreaking around Lake Erie, the Welland Canal, and Lake Ontario.Type: Triple Screw Tugboat Year Built: 1942 Builder: Harry Gamble, Port Dover, ON Engines: 1 Detroit 12V-71-TI, 2 Detroit 671-TAB Horsepower: 1,000 bhp Length: 65′ 00″ Breadth: 20′ 04″ Depth: 4′ 03″ Port of Registry: Nanticoke, ON"

if it's being towed, I suppose it doesn't matter much at this point.

The ship was built as an oil tanker and sailed both in the Atlantic and the Pacific before being rebuilt to a bulk carrier for the great lakes fleet. Many of the older ships sailed the high seas before landing in the lakes. A few lake ships are built to work in both both salt and fresh water.

All true, but if the ship is being towed, again, what difference does it make whether its a laker or saltie? At this point, the ship has become a pile of propulsion-less scrap being towed across the ocean. It's original design is rather irrelevant in this case.