A rare Royal Navy skiff built in 1898 has officially joined the Maritime Museum of British Columbia’s sailing fleet, thanks to the work of volunteers from the Ladysmith Maritime Society.
The 16-foot lapstrake skiff-dinghy was transferred to the museum on March 12 at a small ceremony in Ladysmith attended by Ladysmith Maritime Society (LMS) president Jackie Elliott, Maritime Museum of British Columbia (MMBC) board member Angus Matthews, historian and boatwright Robert Lawson and LMS volunteers.
The vessel now joins Dorothy, Trekka and Tilikum — three heritage sailing vessels already housed in the museum’s active fleet — as part of a growing collection of restored maritime craft. This is the third heritage vessel saved through the partnership between the museum and LMS.
“The meticulous restoration of the Royal Navy skiff-dinghy is yet another remarkable accomplishment of the volunteers at LMS,” said MMBC Collection Committee chair Bill Noon. “On behalf of the people of British Columbia, we thank the crew in the prolific Ladysmith workshop.”
The skiff-dinghy is believed to have been built in Victoria before HMCS Rainbow, the first Royal Canadian Navy vessel on the Pacific coast, was transferred from the Royal Navy in 1910. Smaller craft like this one were common aboard Royal Navy warships from the 1870s through the 1930s. After Rainbow was decommissioned and scrapped in 1920, the skiff was sold at auction, eventually making its way into Lawson’s care by the late 1990s.
Lawson led multiple restoration efforts, logging more than 700 hours of refit work before the vessel was donated to the LMS in 2010. With renewed interest from volunteers working on the museum’s Dorothy project, the final restoration of the skiff began.
West Wind Hardwood donated afromosia wood for new seats, while 130 board feet of salvaged teak decking from a 1930s-era steamer were donated by the granddaughter of the man who originally salvaged it. Additional materials, including bronze castings and Burma teak, were provided by private donors.
“The Royal Navy skiff-dinghy is a fine and rare representative of the last years of hand-built lapstrake boats,” said Lawson. “It is a fantastic artifact and now properly belongs to all the people of British Columbia, thanks to the collaboration of the MMBC and the Ladysmith Maritime Society.”
The skiff-dinghy will be displayed alongside Dorothy, the Dorothy skiff and other historic vessels at the Maritime Museum of B.C.’s 46th annual Victoria Classic Boat Festival, set for Aug. 29-31 in Victoria’s Inner Harbour.
In addition to its active sailing fleet, the museum holds a collection of more than 35,000 objects, 15,000 photos and over 550 linear feet of archival materials. All these items are preserved for public education and research.
