In 1834, the Royal William became the first ship to cross the Atlantic under steam power. Built and fitted at Quebec, its 300 h.p. engines were made in Montreal. The ship was a fine example of Canadian marine engineering and of the excellence of design and workmanship coming from Canadian shipyards. Ocean-going steamships such as the Royal William were much larger and more streamlined than lake vessels such as the Great Britain. Note that ocean-going steamships continued to carry sails.
