Andy McCutcheon100 Years of Wooden Glory - Ditchburn
September 6th 2007 09:27
Early Ditchburn Viking
Ditchburn
One of the most endearing hallmarks of the Muskoka region is personified in the Ditchburn mahogany runabouts used to provide transportation between the train station at the Gravenhurst wharf and the elaborate summer vacation homes and grand hotels.
Many different builders supplied the needed livery vessels but the Ditchburn Boat Company dominated the field, becoming Canada’s most famous boat builder in the 1920’s and 1930’s.
The history of the Ditchburn legacy began in 1869 with the arrival of four Ditchburn brothers from England, who were attracted to “The Dominion of Canada” by the Governments offer of free land grants in the newly opened Muskoka District.
Muskoka abounds in rugged beauty and countless freshwater lakes, but the Ditchburn brothers soon discovered that they must find alternatives to farming as the rocky, pine-covered acidic soil offered little hope for agricultural sustainability.
In England, the Ditchburn family had a longstanding historical connection to boat building.
Thomas Joseph Ditchburn was well known as a pioneer in steel ship construction and in the development of steam power to drive them. Drawing on their nautical heritage the Canadian Ditchburn brothers began building rowboats for local fishermen at the summer hotels and soon established livery stations at various points around the three lakes.
By 1890 Henry Ditchburn who had become the dominant builder of the four brothers established a factory in Gravenhurst adjacent to the Muskoka wharf, where the newly established railroad from Toronto delivered vacationers to the awaiting steamboats that serviced both private cottages and hotels.
Joined by his nephew Herbert, Henry Ditchburns business began to flourish and by 1904, young Herbert had bought the business interests of his uncles company and incorporated it as the Ditchburn Boat Company in 1907. Herbert was listed as President, while his brother Alfred Ditchburn and associate Tom Greavette were listed as directors.
The development of reliable petrol engines in the early part of the 1900’s brought substantial change and unexpected growth to the business.
Wealthy cottagers on the Muskoka and Rosseau lakes, with abundant means, became tired of waiting for the scheduled steamship and livery services at the Gravenhurst wharf and began ordering their own private vessels – that coincidentally were being built within a few hundred meters of the steamship queue.
Production doubled almost every year and new workers were being recruited and trained. Production techniques had become standardized and models were being offered in varying lengths.
In 1915 Sir John Eaton commissioned the building of a 73’ vessel for family and guest transportation from the rail point at Gravenhurst to their summer retreat in Rosseau.
John Craig Eaton was the youngest son of department store magnate Timothy Eaton, who revolutionized Canadians shopping habits through the introduction of nationalized catalogue shopping. Timothy died in 1907 and John inherited Five Million dollars and became president of the T. Eaton Company Ltd., later abbreviated to “Eatons”.
Shortly after taking over his role as President of the T. Eaton Company Ltd., WWI broke out and many of John Eaton’s employees were called off to fight in the war. In addition to receiving their Government pay as soldiers, John Eaton made sure that every Eaton’s employee that fought overseas received their full Eatons pay while away from their families. It was a decision that cost John Eaton upwards of $2,000,000.00 by the end of the war and in 1915 he was knighted Sir John Eaton for his significant philanthropy and contribution to the war effort.
The 73’ boat project commissioned by the Eaton family marked Ditchburns first cooperation with professional marine architects.
Designed by the American firm of Bowes & Mower, “MV Kawandag” incorporated an extensive range of sophisticated equipment and systems previously unknown to Ditchburns, but Herb and his growing work force created a masterpiece in mahogany that catapulted this tiny niche builder into the major leagues.
Already the largest builder in Canada, Racing success in the 1920’s with a fleet of Rainbows, brought fame and American customers to Ditchburn.
The growing company was now able to penetrate the U.S. market capitalizing on its racing success and innovations in leading edge hull designs and mechanical improvement.
Further growth would occur with the opening of a new facility in Orillia Ontario in 1924.
The demand for larger cruisers unable to be transported from the land-locked Muskoka lakes to larger bodies of water prompted this satellite expansion.
The first project was a 100’ cruiser for Commander J.K.L. Ross of Montreal Quebec.
Commander Ross whose Father was one of the founders of the Canadian Pacific Railway that united the east and west coast of Canada, had a great love of the sea. He donated three large vessels to the Royal Canadian Navy at the beginning of WWI, commanding one of them and receiving an OBE for his outstanding naval service.
From 1915 John Ross built a stable of horses and by 1919 was the highest paid thoroughbred owner in North American horse racing history, due in part to his famous colt “Sir Barton” who had won the Withers, Belmont and Preakness Stakes all within a span of 32 days.
By 1927 John Ross was hit by financial adversity and sold his prized horses, stables and a 2,000-acre tract of land just north of Toronto Ontario, known today as the suburb of Agincourt. He bought a sailing vessel and spent the remaining years of his life cruising in the Bahamas and Caribbean.
Many American’s who had the option to choose boats crafted by U.S. builders, opted instead to own a Ditchburn cruiser whose design, construction and individual attention to detail put them in a class of their own. The Commodore of the prestigious New York Yacht Club along with numerous other members of the NYYC bought Ditchburns.
When prohibition was introduced to Americans in December of 1920, many a Canadians fortunes were made and many livelihoods sustained in the depression years that followed the stock market crash.
In the early years of “Rum Running” large power and sailing vessels under the guise of chartered vessels, would make the run from Canada or the United States to either the Bahamas or Cuba where distilled alcohol could be purchased inexpensively. Under the cover of darkness they would make for rendezvous ports to unload their contraband.
As the Coast Guards from both nations began doing radio intelligence and received tips of the illicit activity, it became more difficult for large ships to move in and out undetected and decided instead to stay outside of the 12-mile limit in International waters evading prosecution.
The 12-mile line that was often host to a number of vessels became known as the “Rum Row” and charter operators stockpiled with liquor decided that purchasers of illegal alcohol could assume the risks of being caught with it instead of them.
Fast manoeuvrable boats powered by aircraft engines were used to retrieve payloads of illegal alcohol and were subsequently dubbed “Rum Runners”. They were significantly faster than anything in the Governments fleet at the time and prompted the commissioning of several “Revenue Cutters”.
With the advances in planing hull technology used by Ditchburn in their Gold Cup racers, they bid on a Government contract representing that they were able produce a pair of 38’ revenue cutters capable of maintaining 31mph. Upon delivery of the Ditchburn Vikings, they were fitted with forward mounted machine guns and crewed by three personnel and yet, were still able to maintain 35mph. The Government upon learning this promptly ordered an additional five boats.
Speed claims aside, the Viking quickly became a very popular model with its hard lines and brawny masculine hull shape, its raised engine hatch, elegant windscreen and its exhilarating performance. New hardware designed and manufactured by Ditchburn graced the varnished decks. Leather seating for nine on three benches, plus the possibility of two more in wicker chairs ensured everybody could go along.
Still, it was not a boat for everyone. Tom Greavette, then sales manager for Ditchburn, demonstrated a new Viking but apparently it was not a good day for the demonstration. A light chop grew steadily on the lake and the long upwind pounding on the way to the client’s home jetty, convinced the family to order a more conventional Minett-Shields launch that offered a slower but more familiar ride.
A new Viking cost $5870.00 far beyond the average workers wage of $50.00 per week, but wealthy Muskoka residents were enthusiastic and twenty new boats were sold over the next twenty-four months.
Ditchburn had also cooperated on the development of a stern drive unit for which the United States Patent Office issued patent number 1,765,789 to Herbert Ditchburn of Gravenhurst Ontario Canada.
Ditchburns design involved a propeller drive that could be operated in both directions and a rudder that could be operated independently. At least one unit was designed and tested on a purpose built hull, but the story seems to end there.
Additionally, Herb Ditchburn had been experimenting with hydrofoil technology for use on the Vikings but seemed to place the idea on the back burner in an effort to get orders completed and delivered.
Unfortunately, the disastrous stock market crash was just around the corner and the collapse of trading in October of 1929 spelled the end of a legacy.
The Ditchburn Boat Company was at the pinnacle of its sales and had recently undertaken to expand its Gravenhurst plant. Custom boat builders however, would suffer the greatest losses in the ten-year economic drought that followed the market collapse.
Their first lay-offs came in July 1930 and within a year two-thirds of their skilled labour force had dissipated.
Some custom builds were still being done in Orillia but by 1932 the company was effectively bankrupt. It was shuffled and re-incorporated in 1935 and during that time Herbert Ditchburn did manage a limited production of smaller less luxurious boats, but his lack of sufficient working capital resulted in a secondary closing. A third and final incorporation as the Ditchburn Yacht and Airplane Company featured a shareholder investment scheme that managed to produce some magnificent custom vessels, but it too failed by 1938.
If only they had been able to survive a few more years they would, in all likelihood, still be in business today, as the war brought needed business and prosperity to all Muskoka boat building companies.
Ditchburns today are still recognized as the best and some of the most beautiful boats ever built in Canada. Their important innovations in construction mechanical systems and planing hull design technology produced higher standards of customer satisfaction, safety and utility.
Andy McCutcheon, 100 Years of Wooden Glory. Copyright 2006
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