The date of the spring opening of Quebec harbour determined the movements of ships up the St. Lawrence river. Ships left English ports in March so that they could be into the St. Lawrence by the end of April. Sometimes, as in 1860, the ships would have to wait in the Gulf of St. Lawrence for a favoring wind. Sometimes as many as three hundred ships would come in together. Once the ship was drawn up to receive its cargo, the timber sticks would be loaded through the special stern ports, cut close to the water's edge. This ship is loading deals (planks three or four inches thick - "Standard Quebec" or "English" deals were 12 feet by 11 inches by 2 1/2 inches) - Many timber companies had their own fleets to transport their timber to Great Britain.
The average ship took about three weeks to load. The loading crew had to consider ballasting, particularly with deck cargoes, and the distribution of the cargo both in the length and breadth of the ship. Cargo was wedged and secured against shifting, and the heavy red pine placed below the larger lighter white pine. The storing on deck of an additional quantity of timber could reduce a ship's safety margin considerably by making it difficult to work the vessel. "In 1872 timber ships from Quebec and the Miramichi (N.B.) literally strewed their fabrics and cargo across the western ocean. . . during that year from May to December, the term of the St. Lawrence season, fifty-seven vessels engaged in the timber trade were wrecked and abandoned."
From Greenhill & Giffard, Westcountrymen in Prince Edward's Isle.
