Service History
The
Kakabeka was a passenger and freight propeller built in 1885 In Toronto, Canada. The vessel's official Canadian registry number is C 92611. Her capacity was 300 passengers. The
Kakabeka began as a ferry operation between Port Arthur and Fort William. Later, she was used as a harbor excursion vessel and also was used to ferry passengers to and from Silver Islet, Canada.
Final Voyage
The
Kakabeka foundered in Lake superior, off of Sand Island. Per Holden 1985, no account of casualty has been found; vessel believed to be a total loss.
It appears that the
Kakabeka was stranded and wrecked on Sand Island in Lake Superior, but not the Sand Island that is part of The Apostle Islands. The Sand Island that lies two miles northeast of Silver Islet is a small rocky island located at the tip of the Sibey Peninsula in northwestern Ontario, Canada where a rich vein of silver was discovered in 1868 by the Montreal Mining Company.
December 12, 1895; The small Canadian propeller,
Kakabeka, broke loose from her moorings at Silver Islet and went adrift in the ice headed towards Edward Island. The wind blew her back towards Silver Islet where she met her end. The wrecked
Kakabeka was discovered by the tugs
Mockingbird and
Georgina, but the vessel was beyond any hopes of salvage. However, the machinery was eventually recovered by the
Mocking Bird.