the story of ferry travel in B.C., both good and bad, is told in a new book

From just two ships in 1960 to a fleet of 75 vessels today, BC Ferries is one of the world’s largest ferry fleets in terms of size, boasting a workforce of some 4,500 employees. But the history of coastal ferry travel in these parts stretches back much further than that, long before BC Ferries was even in a twinkle in Premier W.A.C. Bennett’s eye, and even before the founding of British Columbia itself.

Now that story, both good and bad, is being told in Coastal Connections: A History of British Columbia Ferries and Passenger Ships, the latest book from author and historian Derek Hayes. He considers it a natural jumping off point from his last book, Incredible Crossings: The History and Art of the Bridges, Tunnels, and Inland Ferries that Connect British Columbia.

“Well, I mean, B.C.’s so coastally oriented that it’s the obvious sort of continuation. I touched on the inland ferries, but the inland ferry system, whilst very important, is not anything as extensive as the coastal one, so that’s what came out,” he said.

Hayes goes right back to the beginning with the Beaver, which first appeared in these waters in 1836.

“Well, it was pivotal,” he said. “I mean, it was the first steamship of any sort, the first powered ship, to serve the B.C. coast, which meant it could come along in any weather, even when the wind was blowing in the wrong direction. So, that was critical to get things going.”

The first regular reliable passenger ferry service on the coast of B.C. was the Eliza Anderson in 1858. Not coincidentally, just in time for the Fraser River Gold Rush.

“Well, it just happened to be the first,” he said. “There were dozens of paddle steamers that companies sent out from San Francisco to basically transport people from San Francisco to the gold rush. And then, of course, they took them to Victoria typically, but then they needed to get from Victoria to the Lower Mainland. And so, there’s your ferries right there.”

You would have to fast-forward to the 1950s to see the start of the kind of ferry travel we know today. In those days, most of the routes were operated by Black Ball Ferries. The private company pioneered several innovations we now take for granted, including “roll on, roll off” service, where travelers could drive their vehicles on and off vessels that loaded and unloaded at both ends. As Hayes put it, while it wasn’t the first to develop the “roll on, roll off” concept, it was certainly its most fervent popularizer. Black Ball built new “roll on, roll off” terminals at Horseshoe Bay and Gibsons and then Departure Bay.

Black Ball also worked to find the shortest route between two destinations and get there as quickly as possible. It was a novel concept at the time, but it set the stage for how BC Ferries operates today.

Hayes points out the founding of BC Ferries itself in 1960 was the direct result of two simultaneous strikes that left Vancouver Island cut off from the rest of the B.C. for much of the summer of 1958, forcing the government of Premier W.A.C. Bennett to buy up private operators and nationalize their operations.

“Black Ball truly changed the face of coastal British Columbia in the mere ten years between 1951 and 1961 by opening up the Sunshine Coast and giving the public an easy way to get to Vancouver Island,” writes Hayes.

“The company’s sale to BC Ferries in December 1961 marked the beginning and the end of an era in coastal transportation.”

Today, BC Ferries transports some 22 million passengers and 10 million vehicles a year, with more than 500 sailings a day on 25 different routes.

But it does come with some risk. Hayes reminds the reader about the deadly collision between a BC Ferry and a Russian freighter in 1970, and course, the sinking of the Queen of the North in 2006.

“You fly in a plane, or you take a ship or drive down the road or walk down the road…I mean, the reality is there’s a risk in everything,” said Hayes.

“BC Ferries’ safety record is pretty good. I don’t think anybody can challenge that. But, of course, when you get something spectacular happening like a sinking of a ship, that’s obviously going to lead to a lot of questioning.”

Hayes hopes the reader comes away with a better knowledge and appreciation of our much-maligned ferry system.

“How interconnected it is and how hard it is to run and how hard it is to keep it on track and perhaps have a little bit more sympathy for BC Ferries the next time a ferry is cancelled because of mechanical failure,” he said with a knowing laugh.

“Well, just a better understanding of the way B.C. works, I suppose.”

Coastal Connections is informed by a well-written history coupled with fascinating archival materials and original photographs, many of them shot by Hayes himself. The author clearly has a deep passion for his subject, and it comes though on every page.

Coastal Connections: A History of British Columbia Ferries and Passenger Ships is available from Harbour Publishing.