"The Encyclopedia of Northern Shipping" from which these lists were created was developed over several years beginning in 1995, from a wide variety of sources including corporate records, advertisements, memoirs, newspaper articles, and the compilations of Bill MacBride, Edward Affleck and John Mills. We plan to offer the entire 700-page encyclopedia as a pdf as soon as possible.
The names of boats which are followed by (?) are suspect, for a wide variety of reasons - vague or inconsistent references, lack of an indication as to whether they were sternwheelers or propeller-driven, advertisements with no proof that the boats ever actually sailed (a fairly common occurrence), renamed and/or rebuilt boats, and so on. There are also many boats for which we may never find "proof" of their existence - these are generally small home-made affairs which made only one trip to one of the mining fields, where their machinery would be removed and put to work extracting gold or operating a sawmill.
Note that this roster includes those vessels which worked on the Stikine River route to the Cassiar and Klondike gold fields, and those which were reported to be enroute to Alaska.
When included, dates indicate the period of Northern service only.
Some boats are listed twice due to name changes - the second listing is not numbered.
Sternwheelers (361)
Side Paddlewheelers (13)
Propeller-driven Boats (266)
Barges (106)
Rafts (1)
Side Paddlewheelers
- Al-KI
- Ancon
- Baranoff
- California
- Dogpower
- Eliza Anderson
- John L. Stephens
- Mare Island
- Olympian
- Oriflamme
- Pointer (1898)
- Princess Louise
- Sadie (1898-1903)
Propeller-driven Boats
- Alaska (1888-1898)
- Alaska (1899-1906)
- Alert
- Alice Blanchard
- Alliance
- Alpha (St. Michael, ca. 1900)
- Alpha (Carcross, 1930s)
- Amur
- Anchorage Hospital Boat (1943-1957) (became the Riviera Boatel in Fairbanks)
- Anna (1922)
- Anna E. Fay (1898-1905) (1905, renamed A. W. Sterrett)
- Anna Maria (1991-1995)
- Antelope (1901)
- Aquilla (1898-1901)
- Arcade (1898)
- Argonaut (1898-1912)
- Atlintoo
- Atlinto (1917-1950s)
- Augusta C.
- Aurora (1930s)
- Autogo (1908)
- Baranoff
- Bear (?)
- Bertha
- Bessie K.
- Birdswell (1928)
- Blair Athol (Atlin Lake, 1900) (?)
- Brainstorm (Dawson, 1930s-1980s)
- Brant (1929-1943)
- Breadwinner (1899)
- Bristol
- Brixham
- Canyon Boat (Pelly River, 1942)
- Caprice (Stewart River, 1924)
- Captain Jas. Fornace (US Army Alaska, 1909)
- Carol (1900)
- Carrier (NNCo mail launch, 1910)
- Chakawana II (RCMP launch, 1920s)
- Chance (Dawson, 1907)
- C. H. Bradley (1898-1914)
- Chetco (1897-1898)
- Christine (1911)
- City of Astoria
- City of Boston (1898) (? - existence not confirmed)
- City of Columbia
- City of Mexico
- City of Seattle
- City of Topeka
- Clara Belle (1900)
- Clara Nevada (?)
- Cleveland
- Commodore
- Concord (1898)
- Corona (?)
- Costa Rica
- Cottage City
- Cub (1898-1900)
- Cutch
- Czarina
- Czarowitz
- Dancella
- Danube
- Dawson City (renamed Gussie Brown)
- Detroit
- Dirigo
- Dispatch (1904)
- Discovery
- Dodo (1921-1929)
- Dolphin
- Dora
- Dorothy (Carcross, 1920s-1930s)
- Elihu
- Elk No. 1 (1898)
- Elsie
- El Sueno (1897-1899)
- Emma R. (1951)
- Empire (1899-1900)
- Esperanza (1897)
- Eureka (?)
- Excelsior
- Falcon (BYN mail launch)
- Farallon
- Favorite
- Fidelater
- Flamingo (Dawson 1920)
- George Black
- George E. Starr (?)
- George W. Elder
- Gertrude (1898-1909)
- Gladys (NWMP launch, 1899-1911)
- Gloomy Gus (?)
- Gold Seal (?)
- Governor Perkins (1884-1905)
- Governor Stoneman (1897-1898)
- Grayling (mail launch, Dawson, 1929)
- Gussie Brown
- Happy Hooligan (1905)
- Hassler
- Hawk (1920)
- Hayden Brown
- Hazel B. (1917-1930) (tunnel hull)
- Hazel B. No.2 (1920s) (tunnel hull)
- Hazel B. No.3 (1930s) (tunnel hull)
- Hazel B. No.4
(1930s-1940s) (tunnel hull)
- Helen Gould (1906)
- Hera
- Hermosa (?)
- Hettie B.
- Hornet (ca. 1898) (?)
- Humboldt
- Imp (1897-1899)
- Indiana
- Investigator (?)
- Islam
- Islander
- Jayhawker (?)
- Jeanette
- Jefferson
- Jessie (NWMP launch, 1899-?)
- Joe Matthews (1898-1910)
- Josephine (1900)
- Judith Ann (1949-1970) (tunnel hull)
- Julia and Marion (?)
- Kamchatka
- Karluk
- Kestrel (1920-1922) (renamed Neecheah)
- Klawack (1887)
- Kotlik (1916-1921)
- Lakme
- Laurada
- Lena L.
- Leo
- Lively (?)
- Loon (1922-1947)
- Lou Anne I (BYN, 1936)
- Louise (?)
- Lucy (?)
- McCulloch
- Mabel F. (1898-1906)
- Manauense
- Maple Leaf (1915)
- Mariam
- Martha Wilkes (1899)
- Mary
- Mary Sachs
- Mascotte
- Melrose (1902)
- Merrymac (1901-1904) (houseboat)
- Messenger
- Meteor (1900-1949)
- Miami (1898-1906)
- Mischief
- Modoc (1916)
- Mohican (?)
- Moose (late 1920s)
- Morgan City (?)
- Munook (1899-1900)
- Myrtle H. (?)
- Nahlin (1912-1918)
- Nakina
- National City
- Navarro
Neecheah (1922-1940s) (formerly Kestrel)
- New Jersey (?)
- Ning Chow
- Nita (1909)
- Nordica (1899)
- Norgold (1920s-1995)
- North Fork
- Novelty (1885)
- Noyo
- Octavia (?)
- Ohio (1900)
- Omega (1900-1920)
- Oriole (100)
- Ossipee (?)
- Outdoor Life (1911)
- Owl (1930s)
- Pakshan (?)
- Pauline Weaver (1898)
- Pelican (1910-1932)
- Pennsylvania
- Pilot (1910-1918)
- Pilot II (1923-1929)
- Pinta
- Politofsky
- Portland
- Prince Henry
- Princess Adelaide
- Princess Alice
- Princess Beatrice
- Princess Charlotte
- Princess Kathleen
- Princess Louise
- Princess Louise Jr. (1882)
- Princess Mary
- Princess May
- Princess Royal
- Princess Sophia
- Princess Victoria
- Progresso (?)
- Quadra
- Queen
- Queen
- Relief (1904-1923)
- Resaca (?)
- Resolute
- Richard Holyoke
- Richard Rush
- Ripple (1915)
- Roanoke
- Robert Dollar
- Robert Kerr
- Rosa (?)
- Rosalie (1898-1899)
- St. Anthony (1930s)
- St. Paul
- St. Roch
- Sadie (1898)
- San Frisconi (1898)
- Santa Ana
- Schwatka
- Scotia (?)
- Scout (1902)
- Sea Sled (1928-1940)
- Seghers (1938)
- Shamrock (1936)
- Sibilla (1915-1923)
- Sibilla No. 2 (1932-1951)
- Siesta (1902)
- Signal (?)
- Silver Wave (1889)
- South Coast
- South Portland
- Splegatus (1928-1932)
- Spokane
- Stauf (1907)
- Tagish (NWMP launch, 1899-?)
- Takulli (RCMP launch, ca. 1932)
- Tango (1915)
- Tarahne (1917-1937)
- Tasmanian (1899-1906)
- Teal (1909)
- Telegraph (1910)
- Thetis
- Thomas Corwin
- Tillamook
- Union
- Utopia
- Victoria (Atlin, 1899)
- Vidette
- Vixen (1907) (possibly Vivien)
- Wahpoo (1918)
- Walla Walla (?)
- Walsh
- Warrior
- Widgeon (RNWMP launch, 1909)
- Willamette
- Willapa
- Winnifred (1898)
- Witch Hazel (1895-1898)
- Woodchuck (?-1958)
- Yellow Kid (1898)
- York B. (1915)
- Youkon (1869-1883)
- Yukon Health (1946-1955)
- Yukon Rose (1929-1958)
Barges
(p): powered
(b): converted from a boat
- A. B. Shay (1927-1932)
- Admiral (1900)
- Alsek
- Alsek
- Anvik (1914)
- Arizona (1914-1929)
- Atlin (1903-1932) (now at SS Klondike Historic Site)
- Baloon (?-1932)
- Bear (1900-1915) (b)
- Beaver (1905-1929, then renamed Chandalar)
- Big Salmon (1906-1932)
- Bill (1914-1917)
- Budweiser (1909-1927)
- Camille
- Caribou (1903-1915)
- Caribou (1907)
- Carmacks (1907-1932)
Chandalar - see Beaver
- Chena (1914-1923)
- Dakota (1914-1929)
- Dan McDonald (Bennett, 1905)
- Dawson
- Dawson Fire Scow No. 1 (1904-1906)
- Dawson Fire Scow No. 2
- Dawson Fire Scow No. 3
- Donjek
- Elk
- Erie
- Ermine
- Fifty Foot
- Fox
- Generc
- Geranium
- Government Dredging Barge
- Happy Hooligan (house barge, 1905)
- Hootalinqua
- Hundred Foot
- Huron
- Hutchinson
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Innoko
- Irene
- Jean
- Joe
- John A.
- Klaza
- Klondyke
- Last Hope
- Le Barge
- Lewes
- Loon Barge
- Louise
- Lynx
- McNabb
- McQuesten
- Marguerite
- Marten
- Michigan
- Mink
- Mizzoo
- Montana
- Moose
- Muskrat
- New York
- Nisling
- Nome
- Olympia
- Omaha
- Omega (P)
- Onekeno
- Ontario
- Otter
- Pat
- Pelly
- Peter
- Politofsky (B)
- Porcupine
- Red Barge
- St. Michael (No.s 3-10)
- St. Paul
- Sable
- Seal
- Seattle No. 1
- Skunk
- Sterling
- Stewart
- Superior
- Susitna No. 1
- Susitna No. 2
- Tahkeena
- Tahkini
- Taku
- Tanana
- Tantalus
- Tatchun
- Teslin
- Thebo
- Tookeno
- Trahey
- Trinder
- Vachon
- Water Barge
- Weasel
- White Horse
- Wolverine
- Yukon
Rafts
- Pride of the Fortymile (1904)
Ferries
- Dawson Cable Ferry (1901-ca.1915)
- Dorothy (Dawson, 1898) (sternwheeler?)
- Marjorie (Dawson, 1901)
- North Fork Ferry (North Fork of the Klondike River, ca. 1939)
References & Further Reading:
- Affleck, Edward L. - Afflecks' List of Sternwheelers Plying the Yukon Waterways
(Vancouver, BC: Affleck, 1995)
- Mills, John M. - Canadian Coastal and Inland Steam Vessels, 1809-1930 (Providence,
RI: Steamship Historical Society, 1979)
To Northern Ships and Shipping
©1995-2025 Murray Lundberg:
Use for other than research purposes must be approved by the author.
