A moment in history: May 22, 1965

On this day in 1965, the Little Klondike Queen was offering hour-long cruises on the North Saskatchewan River.

Paddleboats were an important part of early Edmonton, when the North Saskatchewan was a major transportation route for both people and cargo. The city even had a small boat-building industry, led by John Walter, whose company built two paddleboats: The City of Edmonton and the City of Strathcona. Railroads and a devastating flood in 1915 spelled the end for Walter's boat-building business, and riverboats soon largely disappeared from the waters of the North Saskatchewan.

Ray Collins wanted to see them come back. The businessman had grown up fascinated by the steamwheelers that used to run on the river, and he was determined to revive them. In 1964, Collins commissioned a 15-metre paddler that he called the Little Klondike Queen, which would offer short cruises along the river several times a day. The 50-minute tours would start and end near the Storyland Zoo (now the Valley Zoo), "rain or shine." There was even a snack bar promising Gold Nugget sandwiches (with no further hint as to what those might be).

Collins had a real passion for paddlers. But passion doesn't always mean success. The Little Klondike Queen was difficult to keep afloat, in terms both nautical and financial. It would often get stuck on sandbars and silt on the river, and it was expensive to run. It lasted for about two years before the business folded.

For a couple of years after that, the boat sat beached on the Big Island, protected by little more than a rusty fence and a few Keep Out signs. But that wouldn't be the end of the boat. The exact details are unclear, but the Little Klondike Queen was eventually sold and moved to Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan, where it was restored and renamed Neo-watin ("no wind"). The boat would continue offering lake cruises for at least a decade afterwards.

Collins didn't give up on his dream of returning paddleboats to Edmonton. Almost 30 years after first launching the Little Klondike Queen, he had another riverboat built, this time called the Edmonton Queen. He would see it float down the North Saskatchewan again, but not as its owner. The Edmonton Queen was scheduled to be launched in 1993, but it was delayed when the boat-builder refused to release it, citing an outstanding debt of $1.35 million. Collins's company eventually went bankrupt, and the boat was sold off.

It would eventually launch in 1995. But much like the Little Klondike Queen, it has seen its share of rough waters. The paddler has changed ownership a few times and spent a fair amount of time in dry dock. Its current owner is Eric Warnke, a successful tech entrepreneur who bought the boat in 2024. It has been a going concern since then, notwithstanding a hiccup on Mother's Day, and tickets are on sale now for Father's Day Weekend and Canada Day, in addition to regular cruises.

This clipping was found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist Rev Recluse of Vintage Edmonton.