FedNav Vessels: FEDERAL PATRIOT, PENDANT, PIONEER, POWER & PRIDE...

A former FedNav vessel (likely FEDERAL PATRIOT) downbound on the Seaway June 6, 2008

Without cargo ships to watch on the St. Lawrence River for several weeks, I found myself digging through some old archives to locate photos of former Seaway vessels.

Did not have a name to go with this ship, but thankfully shipfax.blogspot.com pointed me in the right direction. Learned that the photo was likely FEDERAL PIONEER or one of her sisters.

Leaning towards the vessel being FEDERAL PATRIOT, especially considering she had been in the St. Lawrence Seaway System at the time: http://www.1000islandimages.com/federalpatriot.html


Another specific detail was her YELLOW crane rest.
Many of the other vessels had a RED structure instead.
Some of the sisters also did not have the "FEDERAL" name prefix at the time.


FEDERAL PATRIOT (formerly BBC RUSSIA, ATLANTIC PROGRESS, HAL PATRIOT, ATLANTIC PATRIOT)
IMO: 9223904
Built: 2003 (has YELLOW crane rest)
(now sailing as MSC SUN F)

SISTER SHIPS:

FEDERAL POWER (formerly SEABOARD POWER, ATLANTIC POWER)
(has red crane rest with yellow ladder)
(became FEDERAL POWER until 2007-2013)
IMO: 9190119
Built: 2000
(now sailing as MSC ADA F)





FEDERAL PENDANT (ATLANTIC PENDANT, BBC KOREA, HAL PENDANT)
IMO: 9223899
Built 2003
(has RED crane rest)
(now sailing as SSL SABARIMALAI)





FEDERAL PIONEER (formerly SEABOARD PIONEER, CCNI TUMBES, ATLANTIC PIONEER, ONEGO PIONEER)
IMO: 9190080
Built: 1999
(has RED crane rest)
(now sailing as SEA XPRESS)

This would have been (at least) the third FEDERAL PIONEER on FedNav's history:
Another vessel sailed as FEDERAL PIONEER from 1981-1985 (built 1970 as CARL GORTHON and eventually became CECELIA DESGAGNES).

Back in 1946 the company actually named their very first vessel "FEDERAL PIONEER" (formerly BELL PARK)





FEDERAL PRIDE (formerly ATLANTIC PRIDE, SEABOARD ROVER, SEABOARD CHILE II, HAL PRIDE, ATLANTIC PROGRESS, OSLO WAVE 2)
IMO: 9190107
Built 2000
(has RED crane rest, did not become FEDERAL PRIDE until 2010)
(now sailing as POLA DUDINKA)

ALGOMA NAVIGATOR (1967 - 2016)

 

 


ALGOMA NAVIGATOR
(formerly DEMETERTON, ST. LAWRENCE NAVIGATOR, CANADIAN NAVIGATOR)
Built 1967 by J. Redhead & Sons of South Shields, England.



Originally constructed as an ocean-going bulk carrier (at 567 feet in length), the deep-sea freighter DEMETERTON was acquired by Federal Commerce and Navigation (FedNav).

She was to become FEDERAL TYNE - But that name never appeared on her hull before she was sold again to Leitch Transports (Upper Lakes Shipping) and became ST. LAWRENCE NAVIGATOR.

Her near-sister, the 1963-built CARLTON (was built at Short Bros, Sunderland, England) sailed as FEDERAL TYNE before joining the fleet and becoming ST. LAWRENCE PROSPECTOR.

Both vessels were lengthened in Amsterdam by 80 feet during 1969.
Both ships also being acquired by Upper Lakes Shipping in 1975.

ST. LAWRENCE NAVIGATOR and ST. LAWRENCE PROSPECTOR sailed until 1978-79, before these two former saltwater vessels were lengthened to 730 feet - Taking on the dimensions of a traditional laker.

The cargo holds and bow sections were cut away, with a new forebody.
They emerged as CANADIAN NAVIGATOR and CANADIAN PROSPECTOR, respectively.

It was a relatively new company tradition to have the "CANADIAN" prefix for vessel names.
(existing names included HUNTER, LEADER, MARINER, CENTURY, PROGRESS, OLYMPIC, TRANSPORT, ENTERPRISE)




The NAVIGATOR was converted to a self unloader in 1997 and remained a relatively familiar sight on the Seaway.

She became ALGOMA NAVIGATOR when acquired by Algoma Central in 2011.
Five years of service in Algoma colors before the vessel was finally retired in 2016.

Quite an unusual career for a one-of-a-kind vessel.
She will be missed along the Seaway, as ships of her era slowly disappear to the scrapyard.