View source for HMCS Canada

{{Short description|Sunken Canadian cruiser}}
{{Distinguish|HMS Canada|Canada (ship)|America-class steamship#Canada{{!}}RMS Canada}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2017}}
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{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=HMCS Canada.jpg
|Ship image size=300px
|Ship caption=CGS ''Canada'' (front) at Barrow-in-Furness in 1904
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=Canada
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Canada|naval-1911}} {{shipboxflag|Canada|naval-1921}}
|Ship name=''Canada''
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|Ship builder=[[Vickers|Vickers, Sons & Maxim]], [[Barrow-in-Furness]]
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|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=14 June 1904
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|Ship completed=July 1904
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|Ship renamed=''Queen of Nassau'' (1924)
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|Ship fate=Sold for commercial use, sunk 2 July 1926
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{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Header caption=
|Ship type=[[Patrol vessel]]
|Ship tonnage={{GRT|411}}
|Ship displacement={{convert|557|LT|t}}
|Ship length=*{{convert|200|ft|m|abbr=on}} (as ordered)
*{{convert|206|ft|m|abbr=on}} (modified)
|Ship beam={{convert|25|ft|m|abbr=on}} 
|Ship height=
|Ship draught={{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}} 
|Ship power= {{convert|1800|ihp|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=* 2 × [[Propeller|shafts]], [[triple expansion steam engine]]
|Ship speed={{convert|16|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range=
|Ship endurance=
|Ship complement=60
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*4 ×  [[QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss|3-pounder guns]] (as ordered)
*2 × [[QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun|12-pounder]] and 2 × 3-pounder guns (refit for naval service)
|Ship armour=
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|}

'''CGS ''Canada'''''{{efn|name=prefixes}} was a [[patrol vessel]], sometimes referred to as a [[cruiser]],{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=211}} in the [[Fisheries Protection Service of Canada]], an enforcement agency that was part of the [[Department of Marine and Fisheries (Canada)|Department of Marine and Fisheries]]. ''Canada'' is considered to be the nucleus of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] for her role in training Canadian naval officers and asserting Canadian sovereignty. ''Canada'' saw service in the [[First World War]] and was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] into the Royal Canadian Navy as '''HMCS ''Canada''''' during that conflict. Following the war, the vessel was sold for commercial use and renamed MV ''Queen of Nassau''. On the verge of being sold again, the ship sank in [[Straits of Florida]] on 2 July 1926.

==Description==
''Canada'' was {{convert|200|ft|m}} long as ordered, but ended up {{convert|206|ft|m|abbr=on}} long.{{sfn|Maginley|Collin|2001|p=89}}{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}} The ship had a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|25|ft|m|abbr=on}} and a [[Draft (hull)|draught]] of {{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}}.{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}} ''Canada'' had a [[bow (ship)|ram bow]].{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=139}} The ship had a tonnage of {{GRT|411|disp=long}} and a [[Displacement (ship)|displacement]] of {{convert|557|LT|t|lk=on}}.{{sfn|Maginley|Collin|2001|p=89}}{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}} The ship was propelled by two [[Propeller|shafts]] powered by a [[triple expansion steam engine]] rated at {{convert|1800|ihp|kW|lk=on}}. The ship's maximum speed is different among the sources, ranging from as low as {{convert|14|kn|lk=in}} to as high as {{convert|22|kn}}.{{sfn|Maginley|Collin|2001|p=89}}{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}}{{efn|name=speed}} The ship could carry {{convert|110|LT|t}} of [[coal]] for fuel.{{sfn|''Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I''|p=99}} The ship was initially fitted with four [[QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss|3-pounder guns]]. For naval service, the ship was rearmed with two [[QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun|12-pounder]] and two 3-pounder guns.{{sfn|Maginley|Collin|2001|p=89}}{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}} ''Canada'' was fitted with a [[Wireless telegraphy|Marconi wireless]], a device just being installed aboard much larger British warships at the time.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=139}}

==Service history==
===Civilian service===
As part of [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] Sir [[Wilfrid Laurier]]'s efforts to relieve [[Great Britain]]'s overall commitment to North American defence in the wake of the [[Second Boer War|Boer War]], the Laurier government sought to develop the Fisheries Protection Service. As part of this effort, the government ordered a patrol ship in 1903–1904 for service on the [[Atlantic Canada|East Coast of Canada]].{{sfn|Gimblett|2009|p=4}}{{sfn|Milner|2010|p=11}} ''Canada'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] by [[Vickers|Vickers, Sons & Maxim]] at their shipyard in [[Barrow-in-Furness]], [[England]] and [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 14 June 1904.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lady Strathcona Christens New Steamer "Canada" |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0003217/19040614/025/0002 |access-date=13 June 2024 |work=Ottawa Free Press |issue=10257 |date=14 June 1904 |page=2 |via=British Newspaper Archive}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=To Protect Canadian Fisheries: Steamer Launched at Barrow |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000711/19040614/111/0004 |access-date=13 June 2024 |work=Lancashire Daily Post (Evening edition) |issue=5497 |date=14 June 1904 |location=Preston |page=4 |via=British Newspaper Archive}}</ref> The ship was completed in July that year.{{sfn|Miramar Ship Index}}{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=148}} ''Canada'' arrived at [[Quebec City]] on 29 September after undergoing a two-week inspection at [[Gaspé, Quebec]]. The ship then sailed for [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]] to install the Marconi wireless and more [[sea trial]]s.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=148}} 
[[File:Canadian naval cadets Notman-19121.jpg|thumb|left|The original group of Canadian naval cadets serving in CGS ''Canada'']]

In January 1905, with naval militia recruits aboard, the ship was sent to the [[Caribbean Sea]] to join [[Royal Navy]] [[naval exercise]]s there.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=149}} ''Canada''{{'}}s participation in Royal Navy fleet exercises in 1905 is considered by some to be the beginnings of Canada's naval activity.<ref name="Boswell">{{cite web |url=https://vancouversun.com/technology/Canada+first+warship+preserved+near+Florida+Keys/2920122/story.html |first=Randy |last=Boswell |title=Canada's first warship to be preserved – near Florida Keys |publisher=Canwest News Service |work=Vancouver Sun |date=17 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420222950/http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Canada+first+warship+preserved+near+Florida+Keys/2920122/story.html |archive-date=20 April 2010 |access-date=24 May 2017}}</ref> The patrol vessel's planned Caribbean cruise in 1907 was cancelled due to personnel requirements.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=160}} In 1908, the Canadian government sought to build a naval militia around ''Canada''. This was soon put off as the department came under investigation.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|pp=173–177}} That year ''Canada'' took part in Quebec City's tercentenary celebrations.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=177}}

In 1908, ''Canada'' became a [[training ship]] for officer cadets for the planned Canadian navy.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=180}} Thus CGS ''Canada'' became Canada's first naval training ship and was, as stated by naval historians in Canada, the "Flagship of the embryonic Canadian Navy at the time, symbolic of the evolution of Canada from a dominion within the British Empire to a sovereign nation."<ref name=RRR>{{cite journal |last=Casserley |first=T |title=A Ram Bow in the Keys: Latest findings from the Investigation of the Steamer Queen of Nassau. |journal=In: SF Norton (Ed). 2003. Diving for Science...2003. Proceedings of the 22nd Annual Scientific Diving Symposium |publisher=[[American Academy of Underwater Sciences]] |location=Greenville, North Carolina |year=2003 |url=http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/4739 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415171951/http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/4739 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=15 April 2013 |access-date=31 January 2015}}</ref> In 1909, the Fisheries crew was removed from the ship and volunteers from the [[Royal Navy Reserve]] were brought aboard to provide a higher level of naval training. However, ''Canada'' continued to be used as a fisheries patrol vessel.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=230}} In 1910, the Canadian navy was formed ''Canada'' escorted one of the nation's newly acquired [[cruiser]]s, {{HMCS|Niobe||2}}, into [[Halifax Harbour]], with the new navy's cadets and the Director of the Naval Service, Rear Admiral [[Charles Kingsmill]], aboard.{{sfn|Milner|2010|p=19}}

===HMCS ''Canada''===
[[File:HMCS Canada CN-3793.jpg|thumb|right|As HMCS ''Canada'', during the First World War]]
After the [[First World War]] broke out in August 1914, ''Canada'' was transferred to the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] on 4 August.{{sfn|Tucker|1962|p=217}} The ship then underwent a refit that rearmed her with more powerful weaponry and raised ''Canada''{{'}}s [[forecastle]].{{sfn|Maginley|Collin|2001|p=89}} The ship was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] as HMCS ''Canada'' on 25 January 1915 and served on the Atlantic coast as an anti-submarine patrol vessel.{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}} In June 1915, ''Canada'' escorted four [[British H-class submarine|H-class submarines]] from Quebec City to [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]].{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=290}} In July 1915, ''Canada'' with {{HMCS|Grilse}}, escorted two [[troopship]]s through the [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]]. However, both ships needed long refits afterwards and did not return to service until September.{{sfn|Hadley|Sarty|1991|p=121}} By 1917, ''Canada''{{'}}s [[boiler]]s were worn out and needed replacement.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=615}} On 6 December 1917 she was one of the ships anchored at [[CFB Halifax|HMC Dockyard]] in Halifax Harbour during the [[Halifax Explosion]]. She suffered minor damage and one crew member was seriously injured.{{sfn|Armstrong|2002|p=51}} In 1918, ''Canada'' was among the Canadian naval vessels used to escort convoys from Quebec City through the Gulf of St. Lawrence.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|pp=779, 789}} Following the end of the war, HMCS ''Canada'' was [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] in November 1919.{{sfn|Macpherson|Barrie|2002|p=18}}

===''Queen of Nassau''===
In 1920, ''Canada'' was offered for sale at a price of $25,000.<ref name=AUE>{{cite web |last=Barnette |first=Michael C. |url=http://uwex.us/qonarticle.html |title=The ''Queen of Nassau'': How one of Canada's first warships ended up off the Florida Keys |access-date=31 January 2015 |author-link=Michael C. Barnette |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090518091711/http://uwex.us/qonarticle.html |archive-date=18 May 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> When no one purchased her, she was laid-up in Halifax.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} In 1921, ''Canada'' was offered to the [[Navy League of Canada]] for free, but the Navy League could not afford the insurance and other costs associated with the ship, and the offer was declined.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|MacFarlane|2010|p=841}} After four years of neglect she was sold to Florida Inter Islands Steam Ship Company and then re-sold to Florida real estate entrepreneur [[Barron Collier|Barron Gift Collier Sr.]]{{sfn|Miramar Ship Index}} The ship was renamed  ''Queen of Nassau'' and pressed into service [[passenger ship|passenger service]] between [[Miami, Florida]] and [[Nassau, Bahamas]].<ref name=noaa>{{cite web |url=http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/maritime/expeditions/qon.html |title=National Marine Sanctuaries – Queen of Nassau |publisher=National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration |date=1 August 2012 |access-date=24 May 2017}}</ref> This was a service for which she was poorly equipped, lacking comfortable overnight accommodations for the island cruise, as well as air conditioning. Passengers rapidly lost interest in the service and once again the ship sat idle and rusting, this time for 18 months in [[Biscayne Bay]].{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

Collier announced some [[Mexican people|Mexican]] investors were interested in purchasing the ship for service in the [[Gulf of Mexico]] in June 1926. The ship left Miami in ballast on 30 June 1926 for [[Tampa, Florida]] to undergo a final inspection before the sale. After stopping twice in the [[Straits of Florida]] due to problems with her boilers, she began taking on water on 2 July 1926. At first her three pumps were enough to keep her afloat but when flooding reached her engine room, the boilers cooled and then failed, leaving no power for the pumps. The 18-person crew abandoned ship and shortly after 7:00 pm the vessel slipped below the waves stern-first in {{convert|35|fathom|lk=in}} of water off [[Islamorada]].{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} The site of the wreck is located {{convert|50|nmi|lk=in}} south of Miami and roughly {{convert|7|mi}} south of [[Lower Matecumbe Key]].{{sfn|Miramar Ship Index}}<ref name=noaa/>

==Wreck site==
The wreck was located by technical [[Scuba diving|divers]] in 2001 and rests in {{convert|235|ft}} of water off of Islamorada, Florida.<ref name=RRR/> In March 2003, the site was the focus of an [[archaeological]] investigation by a NOAA team consisting of the [[Monitor National Marine Sanctuary]], [[East Carolina University]], [[National Undersea Research Program|National Undersea Research Center]] (NURC) at the [[University of North Carolina at Wilmington]]<ref name=RRR/> and videographer Rick Allen and Kimberly Faulk<ref>{{cite web |title=Deepwater Archaeology in Oil and Gas |first=Kimberly L. |last=Faulk |date=14 December 2010 |url=http://muablog.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/deepwater-archaeology-in-oil-and-gas-by-kimberly-l-faulk-nee-eslinger/ |website=Museum of Underwater Archaeology}}</ref> from Nautilus Productions. [[Nautilus Productions]] provided site documentation, documented the archaeological survey and recorded diving activities during the dives.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nautilus Productions – Archaeology |url=http://nautilusproductions.com/archaeology |website=Nautilus Productions}}</ref> The wreck is encrusted with [[oysters]], as well as [[sponges]], [[coral]]s, and other invertebrate growth and rests upright on a white, sandy bottom.<ref name=AUE/>

[[Archaeologist]]s are working toward designating the wreck a [[U.S. National Historic Site]] because of the significance it holds in the evolution of Canada's military.<ref name="Boswell"/>

==Notes==
{{notelist
|notes=
{{efn
|name=prefixes
|CGS stands for [[Canadian Government Ship]] and HMCS stands for [[His Majesty's Canadian Ship]]
}}
{{efn
|name=speed
|The [[Wikipedia:Miramar|Miramar Ship Index]] gives the ship's speed as {{convert|16|kn}} and ''Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I'' claims it was 14 knots.
}}
}}

==Citations==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book|first=John Griffith |last=Armstrong |year=2002 |title=The Halifax Explosion and the Royal Canadian Navy: Inquiry and Intrigue |publisher=UBC Press |location=Vancouver |isbn=0-7748-0891-8 }}
* {{csr|register=MSI|id=1116870|shipname=Canada|access-date=24 May 2017 |ref={{sfnref|Miramar Ship Index}}}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Gimblett |editor-first=Richard H. |year=2009 |title=The Naval Service of Canada 1910–2010: The Centennial Story |publisher=Dundurn Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55488-470-4 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Hadley |first1=Michael L. |last2=Sarty |first2=Roger |name-list-style=amp |year=1991 |title=Tin-Pots & Pirate Ships: Canadian Naval Forces & German Sea Raiders 1880–1918 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |location=Montreal & Kingston |isbn=0-7735-0778-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/tinpotspirateshi0000hadl }}
* {{cite book |title=Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I |publisher=Military Press |location=New York |orig-year=1919 |year=1990 |isbn=0-517-03375-5 |ref={{sfnref|''Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I''}}}}
* {{cite book |last1=Johnston |first1=William |last2=Rawling |first2=William G.P. |last3=Gimblett |first3=Richard H. |last4=MacFarlane |first4=John |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=The Seabound Coast: The Official History of the Royal Canadian Navy, 1867–1939 |volume=1 |publisher=Dundurn Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55488-908-2 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Macpherson |first1=Ken |last2=Barrie |first2=Ron |name-list-style=amp |year=2002 |title=The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002  |edition=Third |publisher=Vanwell Publishing |location=St. Catharines, Ontario |isbn=1-55125-072-1 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Maginley |first1=Charles D. |last2=Collin |first2=Bernard |name-list-style=amp |year=2001 |title=The Ships of Canada's Marine Services |publisher=Vanwell Publishing Limited |location=St. Catharines, Ontario |isbn=1-55125-070-5 }}
* {{cite book |last=Milner |first=Marc |year=2010 |title=Canada's Navy: The First Century |edition=Second |publisher=University of Toronto Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-0-8020-9604-3 }}
* {{cite book |last=Tucker |first=Gilbert Norman |year=1962 |title=The Naval Service of Canada, Its Official History – Volume 1: Origins and Early Years |publisher=King's Printer |location=Ottawa, Ontario |oclc=840569671 }}

==External links==
* [http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/canada/ww1/convert/ Converted civilian vessels]
* [http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?191363 ''Queen of Nassau'' at wrecksite.eu]

{{coord|24|47|N|080|39|W|display=title}}
{{1926 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Canada}}
[[Category:Patrol vessels of the Canadian Coast Guard]]
[[Category:Patrol vessels of the Royal Canadian Navy]]
[[Category:1904 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Barrow-in-Furness]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1926]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks of the Florida Keys]]
[[Category:Underwater archaeological sites]]
[[Category:Auxiliary ships of the Royal Canadian Navy]]
[[Category:World War I naval ships of Canada]]