Hornby Island Community Archives
R.G. 31
Acc. No.:2019-02-28/66
Finding aid created by: Regan Fahey
Last Updated: February 2019
Title: Ferry Collection
Level of description: collection
General material designation: textual records
Extent: 26 cm
Creator(s): Hornby Island Residents and Ratepayers, Albert Savoie
Dates of creation: 1951-2008
Scope and content: The records of this collection reflect the communities efforts and peristence to establish and maintain a ferry service to Hornby Island in the 1950’s and over time come to reflect a general discontent with the cost of that service.
Source of supplied title: Title is based on the subject of the collection.
Immediate source of acquisition: The collection contains previously accesstioned files, which were donated by Betty Smith (985.40) in 1985 and Allen Jones (985.133) in 1985. All other original accession date(s)are unkown as the Archives acquired the records several years prior to their being accessioned in 2019.
Arrangement: The original filing scheme of the records was reconstructed during archival arrangement on the basis of chronological order.
Language of materials: English
Record no.: 31
Repository: Hornby Island Community Archives
Finding aids: Finding aid available with file level control.
Related group of records: Related material can be found in the Early Settlers Collection (1-11 Savoie Family, 1-12 Savoie Family), the Hornby Island Community School Collection (2-15 Perspectives of Hornby Island History) and throughout the Photograph Collection. Note – many of the early records of this collection were created by the Hornby Island Residents and Ratepayers Association (HIRRA), which also has its own collection.
Accuruals: Further accurals are expected
File Inventory
Box 1
1-1 Correspondence, 1951
Re: the Ferry Committee – a committee of the Farmers Institue – contacting different levels of provincial and federal governement in an attempt to establish a daily ferry service linking Hornby Island to Vancouver Island, with focus on funding for building a landing for the ferry service at Shingle Spit or having access to the government wharf existing at Ford Cove
1-2 Correspondence, 1952
Re: support from Courtenay-Comox Chamber of Commerce for Hornby ferry, engineer visit to assess breakwater installation at Shingle Spit and landing at Gravelly Bay, list of residents names pledging to abide by decisions made by engineer in regard to location for ferry landing to allieve government concerns that there would be dissession over the matter, nearing completion of ferry build by Albert Savoie and resignation that the community may have to build landing themselves to accomodate boat, engineer estimates of breakwater and concrete ramp construction costs ($171,000 total), and miscellaneous
1-3 Correspondence, minutes, and reports, 1953
Re: ferry landings, minutes of public meeting – 2 copies, one marked with notes by an unknown hand, need for breakwater, Albert Savoies commitment to operating ferry whether or not there is a government subsidy, minutes of Ferry Committee meeting, withdrawal of Bond family from agreement to take no action on transportation problem except through appointed committee, request to Hornby Island Property Owners and Residents Ass’n for financial support to the Ferry Committee to send delegates to Victoria, suggestion of a landing strip installation in view of lack of boat service, summary of correspondence recieved, Marine Express Lines resumption of service for summer season and schedule, transfer of business of Ferry Committee to H.I. Propery Owners and Residents Ass’n, plea to Public Works to support ferry as farming and tourism are the main industries on Hornby, ferry subsidy, Ford’s Cove wharf, automobile landing facilities and questions as to which level of government – provincial or federal – is responsible, removal and replacement of Ford Cove wharf, report to Executive on Denman-Hornby ferry discussion, update on progess of ferry launching by Albert Savoie, notice to Minister of Public Works of upcoming discontinuation of freight or passanger transportation on or off the Island, assurances that tedners would be called immediately for a ferry, thankful acknowledgments, subsidized passenger and car ferry but still without proper ferry landings resulting in frequent weather disruptions to service, and miscellaneous
1-4 Correspondence, minutes, reports, financial documents and ephemera, 1954 (2 photographs)
Re: newspaper clipping of ferry, personal correspondence from Mrs.Loutet discussing new ferry and the complications of where the landing should be built – Fords Cove or Goose Spit(Shingle Spit), memorandum concerning the ferry landings and the existing conditions and the propasals of the landing site at either Shingle Spit or Ford’s Cove, ferry landings, telegram sent to Minister of Public Works requesting immediate funds for
1-4 (con’t) Correspondence, minutes, reports and ephemera, 1954 (2 photographs)
landing facilities or only mode of transportation will cease to be able to operate, transcriptions of phone conversation with road engineer regarding Spit road project to allow for a landing at the Spit and handwritten notes of the visit with the engineer, memorandum on ferry and landings, ferry approaches report, request for monthly log of passengers, Presidents report to the special general meeting to discuss transportation situation, Gravelly Bay slipway, priority for freight carrier and concerns about overnight parking in ferry lineup, propsed ferry schedule, coordination with Denman-Buckley Bay ferry to allow for connections, letter to editor, thankful acknowledgments, traffic figures for 3 months, foreshore lease for ferry wharf, estimated annual operating costs, ferry operation figures for 1954, and miscellaneous
4-1, 4-2 Albert Savoie, Leo Savoie, Irene Walton and Jimmy Loutet’s car on new ferry (2 copies, one mistakenly identifying Jimmy Loutet in photo)
1-5 Correspondence and lists, 1955
Re: revision of ferry contract, list of letters sent and recieved concerning transportation issue, foreshore reservations, scheduling, fare revision, breakwaters necessary to protect landings, and miscellaneous
1-6 Correspondence and lists, 1956
Re: foreshore reservation, urgent need for breakwater and request for upgrade to 6 car ferry, damage to ferry during storm and removal from service for 1-2 weeks, imploring Minister of Highways Gaglardi for assistance in recieving funding from Federal Government for breakwater, unfavourable comparison of Hornby Island ferry infastructure with Denman-Buckley Bay, list of letters sent and recieved concerning breakwater and landings, and miscellaneous
1-7 Correspondence, financial documents and ephemera, 1957
Re: provincial jurisdiction of ferry service, breakwater, foreshore rights, frustration that the Hornby community financed and built own ferry slips when that falls under the provincial governement responsiblity and has been provided to other Gulf Islands, refusals from both levels of governement to take responsibility for breakwater installation, schedule revision, suggestion to replace privately owned ferry with government owned and operated, statement of income and expenses and miscellaneous
1-8 Correspondence, 1958
Re: government owned ferry, Ford Cove wharf maitenance, schedule revisions and concerns, breakwater, cost estimates for Shingle Spit and Ford Cove harbour facilities, installation of radiophones on ferries for emergency, and miscellaneous
1-9 Correspondence and minutes, 1959
Re: breakwater, priority for freight operator, minutes of ferry meeting and miscellaneous
1-10 Correspondence, 1960
Re: ferry landings, agreement by Victoria to provide $20-30,000 for breakwater and pilings, request for Federal government to provide protection to Gravelly Bay landing which they own, and miscellaneous
1-11 Correspondence, 1961
Re: request for ferry subsidy increase to allow for the building of a bigger ferry and alleviate long waits at Gravelly Bay, ferry landing repairs, breakwater, rates, increase in ferry subsidy granted, schedule revisions, and miscellaneous
1-12 Correspondence, 1962
Re: breakwater, lights at ferry landings, and miscellaneous
1-13 Correspondence, 1963
Re: breakwater, schedule revisions, and miscellaneous
1-14 Correspondence, reports and ephemera, 1964
Re: breakwater, schedule revisions, extension of service during peak months, report to Courtenay-Comox Chamber of Commerce, and miscellaneous
1-15 Tarriff of Rates, Operating Schedule and Correspondence, 1964, 1992
Re: tarriff of rates and operating schedule signs from 1964, correspondence from the Archives to Ina Curran of Saltspring Island who found the signs floating in the water around Saltspring Island and sent them back to Hornby
1-16 Correspondence, 1965
Re: breakwater and extension of service, schedule revisions, dredging at ferry landing, and miscellaneous
Box 2
2-1 Correspondence, lists, and a petition, 1966-1970
Re: breakwater, Federal Government subsidy program, lists of ship subsidies across Canada, dredging at ferry landings, petition from Denman and Hornby residents for a new Denman ferry and blacktopping of the road, ferry schedule revisions, car and passenger estimates for 4 summer months (7, 000/21,000), piling maitenance, request for larger Government run ferry, need for larger ferry for both Islands, propasals by Albert Savoie to replace Lorraine S2 with steel vessel for a 5 year contract with option to renew and a tender of $60,000 yearly, and miscellaneous
2-2 Ferry photographs, c.1950’s-1970’s (23 photographs) (4 originals, 19 reprints)
2-1 Phipps Point Landing, 1956. Alan Pickering boat, Leo Savoie’s boat “Fatima”, two car ferry Hornby Island IV. All built at Phipps Point (Phipps Point extension – #76 see Betty Smith Collection 2-11)
2-2 Alberts ferry (at Gravelly Bay)
2-3 2 people disembarking from ferry
2-4 Ferry coming into landing with passengers and cars
2-5 First car on first ferry, c 1953
2-6 Hornby Island V at Gravelly Bay
2-7 Lorraine S at Gravelly Bay
2-8 Gravelly Bay, c1967-168
2-9 The Ferry
2-2 Ferry photographs, c.1950’s-1970’s (con’t)
2-10 Hornby Island ferry
2-11 Last sailing of Lorraine S, 1971 (Bob Cain photo) (#77A see Betty Smith Collection 2-11)
2-12 Albert and Leo Savoie’s
2-13 Cosntruction begins on Lorraine S (#88 see Betty Smith Collection 2-11)
2-14 Boat building at Phipps Point
2-15 Boat building at Phipps Point
2-16 Boat building at Phipps Point
2-17 Boat building at Phipps Point
2-18 Hornby Island V at final rest (#87 A Boat building at Phipps Point)
2-19 Boat at Phipps Point
2-20 Boat at Phipps Point
2-3 Rolf Bruhn log book and ephemera, 1971
Re: log book entries filled in by an unknown hand of departure from Nanaimo shipyard of Rolf Bruhn to commence government service of Hornby-Denman route and newspaper clipping
2-4 Ephemera, correspondence and financial documents, 1973-1974, 1976-1977, 1979
Re: ferry traffic statistics, fare structure for BC Ferries, notice of public hearing, Island Trustees Betty Smith and Carol Martin brief to the Chairman Ferry Inquiry Committee, revenue collected on MV Albert J Savoie for month of November and newspaper clippings
2-5 MV Albert J Savoie ephemera, 1985, 1968, 1977-1982
Re: note from Alex B to Doris (Savoie) giving her items from the Albert J Savoie for her project, certificates and deviation records from the boat, and other ephemera
2-6 Ephemera and correspondence, 1982-1984 (2 photographs)
Re: ferry strike bulletin, rate increases, newspaper clipping about Albert Savoie
6-1 Ferry strike, 1983 (Bob Cain photo)
6-2 Ferry strike, 1983 (Bob Cain photo)
2-7 Reports, correspondence, notices and ephemera, 1987
Re: ferry rate increases, increases affecting off Island school trips, notice of public meeting, report of ferry fare committee, ferry committee newsletter, current and proposed ferry rates compared, newspaper clippings and miscellaneous
2-8 Ephemera, notices and reports, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1996
Re: overheight surcharge, newspaper article about Savoies and ferries, commuter books and tickets, text of a presentation to Trush Council “The Island in the Middle” about the challenges faced by Denman as the stepping stone to Hornby, traffic statistics and miscellaneous
2-9 Memorandum and report, 1997
Re: stakeholders meeting and BC Ferries Identification of Issues for Regional Strategic Plan Report of Meetings held
2-10 Photographs, 1997 (52 photographs)
Re: courtesay of Ian Steward, photographs of community protest at Buckley Bay
2-11 Notice and ephemera, 2008
Re: rally to protest fares, introduction of BC Ferries Experience card to replace commuter tickets
2-12 Ephemera, 1980, 1983, 1985, n.d
Re: 5 cent and 10 cent ferry ticket books, loose 5c, 10c, 25c, 50c, $2.00 and $5.00 ticket receipts, used vehcicle commutation passes, covers for booklets of tickets at a variety of prices and ferry ticket reciepts
2-13 Ephemera, n.d ( 1 photograph)
Re: 5 uniform badges, postcard of the last sailing of Lorraine S, typed list of ferries serving Hornby Island, ferry schedules, results of questionairre on ferry service and newspaper clippings
13-1 Brian Donnelly & Ron Graham. 2 skippers of Albert Savoie