Description
This large format $30 two ounce fine silver coin features stunning images of the Edwardian Era SS Keewatin ship from both the bow and the stern. Five years older than Titanic, SS Keewatin was built in 1907 in Govan, Scotland, in the same Edwardian-era tradition—and with a similar focus on luxury, comfort, and class—as the famous ocean liner. After crossing the Atlantic, Keewatin entered service in 1908 as part of CPR’s Upper Great Lakes fleet. And for more than 50 seasons, her lake route was the two-and-a-half-day run from her home port of Port McNicoll, Ontario., to another key CPR terminal, Port Arthur/Fort William (now Thunder Bay), Ontario. But as freight transportation shifted to planes, trains and automobiles, the “Kee” was re-focused on transporting tourists as part of the CPR trans-Canada train/boat experience, "The Canadian". She was eventually retired on November 28, 1965.
The last Edwardian steamer delivered tens of thousands of immigrants, moved troops in both World Wars and introduced tourism to the Canadian North and West. Her design has been praised by Frank Lloyd Wright, immortalized in movies and TV shows, and she still attracts media attention today. Restored to full glory, she is an indisputable Canadian treasure and continues to serve as a living history experience in Port McNicoll, Ontario. Once doomed to be scrapped, Keewatin was saved when a historian purchased her in 1967 and towed her to Lake Kalamazoo, where she served as a maritime museum. In 2011, the Friends of Keewatin organization acquired the historic ship, and in 2012, the grand lady came home once more.
This intricately engraved coin is dated 2020 with a $30 denomination and weighs 62.69 grams (two ounces) of pure silver. Adding to its collectability, the mintage is extremely limited to just 3,000. Also included with this fine silver coin is a beautiful, limited edition print, signed by artist Benjamin Swartz. HST/GST exempt.
The Design:
The reverse design features a starboard bow view of SS Keewatin in service in the Canadian Pacific Railway Upper Lake fleet between 1908 and 1965. The obverse features the framed effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt beneath the port stern view of Keewatin, as she plies the waters between Port McNicoll, Ontario, and Port Arthur/Fort William (present-day Thunder Bay), Ontario.
