1927
Samuel Kirk Rowe Anderson (Known as Kirk) was born at Shoal Brook, Newfoundland on 20th Feb 1927.
1962 and before
Kirk owned and was Captain of the ship Nancy Caines. Used the ship to carry freight and fish up and down the coast of Newfoundland. Ship was bought from the Caines family. Kirk sold the ship in 1962. His brother George Anderson worked with him on the ship. Believe they worked out of Bonne Bay.
1963
The Lavallee 2 (would love to get a picture of her)
The former British Columbia whale catcher Weswhale 4, built at Tacoma in 1942 for the U.S. Navy as a YMS-class anti-submarine patrol vessel, was rebuilt, repowered and fitted with sonar and other electronic gear at Celtic Shipyard for a new career as a herring seiner. Renamed Lavallee II, she was assigned by B. C. Packers to its base at Harbour Breton, Newfoundland. The transfer was indicative of the increased interest of British Columbia fisheries firms in the lucrative herring industry of the maritime provinces. Gordon Newell, Maritime Events of 1967, H. W. McCurdy Marine History of the Pacific Northwest 1966 to 1976, p.XLV.
Where Experience Counts
Accordingly, the author met with Dunphy's Captain Sid Anderson of the "Dunville" to discuss their problems.
Captain Anderson's echo sounding charts showed extremely dense and large schools of herring but as reported, the "Dunville's" seine was too
shallow to reach the schools. The vessel could not carry a deep enough 61 seine owing to the lack of deck space aft, and the seine in use was carried on an old-fashioned seine table. Furthermore, they were not equipped with a power skiff for towing off, or a power block for hauling the seine.
The author recommended modernization of the "Dunville", which would allow a deep seine to be carried and thus produce all the herring
Dunphy's required. Midwater trawling had not advanced sufficiently to give such certainty.
Not being a purse seine specialist, the author arranged for the contracting of Captain Walter Steen, a Vancouver, British Columbia, herring
seine skipper, to supervise the modernization of the "Dunville" and teach its captain and crew the latest techniques.
It was decided also to attempt midwater trawling for herring and the Newfoundland Fisheries Development Authority provided a 60 foot, 160
h.p. longliner called the "Cape Ballard" for this purpose.
The "Dunville's" seine table was removed, the deck was squared and bulwarks were built around it to carry a longer and deeper seine. A
power block was also installed to handle the seine while a long range recording type sonar, the first of its type in Canada, was installed to locate
the herring.
The "Dunville", needless to say, was an immediate success and caught more herring off Bonne Bay than Dunphy's had dreamed of.
The "Cape Ballard" was rigged for midwater trawling and equipped with the first net sounder in North America.
Unfortunately, the trawl winch was not powerful enough to haul the trawl against a fair propeller thrust and when the propeller thrust was reduced to allow the winch to haul, the herring would swim out of the trawl. As a result, the "Cape Ballard's" catches were small with the best single
hauls yielding about 10 tons and the best day's fishing producing some 20 tons of herring, far below what the "Dunville" could do.
Exploratory Fishing
On returning to Vancouver, Walter Steen informed Ken Fraser, then Vice-President of B.C. Packers, of the herring resource around Newfoundland.
B.C. Packers were about to move their groundfish trawling operation to a new plant in Harbour Breton on Newfoundland's south coast, and a meal plant for groundfish offal was to be installed. The company was willing to install equipment for processing herring also, provided herring could be found nearer to Harbour Breton.
The author's proposal to use the "Cape Ballard" to explore for herring off the south coast of Newfoundland was subsequently accepted. Midwater trawling was considered far more suitable for such work than purse seining, since a school of fish registered on the recorder could be sampled
much quicker, no matter how deep it was. Sampling could also be carried out in rougher weather, a smaller crew could be used and the cost of repairing trawl damage was small compared to that for a purse seine.
Under command of Captain George Lace, English Harbour West, Newfoundland, with the author as project leader, the "Cape Ballard" began
exploring for herring in St. Mary's Bay in March, 1963. Working westward, every bay was searched but no significant recorder indications were seen
until the vessel reached Cape la Rune, where some indications were noted. More schools were spotted near Ramea and finally large schools were discovered from La Poile Bay to Port Aux Basque.
The recordings were verified by sampling with the trawl, which despite modifications could only catch small quantities (today the problem
can be pinpointed to insufficiently large meshes in the forebody), never exceeding two tons per haul. Nevertheless, the midwater trawl had served
its purpose and the author was able to state that the herring potential was very large.
Subsequently, B.C. Packers equipped the plant for herring reduction. They also rigged their ex-whaler "Lavallee" at Vancouver for herring
seining and sailed her around to Newfoundland. In order to stimulate what appeared to be a very promising new sector of the Atlantic fishing industry, the Industrial Development Branch chartered this vessel under command of Captain Kirk Anderson. Following some initial technical difficulties, large catches were made, thus establishing a large herring fishery on Newfoundland's south coast and encouraging development in the other provinces.
The cost to government for establishing this industry was less than $200,000. In 1961, the total Newfoundland herring catch was only 6,202 short
tons (mostly processed for human consumption). It grew to a 1968 high of approximately 160,572 tons with a landed value of approximately $3,284,000, or a processed value of about $6,900,000.
The success of the Newfoundland herring fishery developments led to the establishment of similar herring fishing industries in Nova Scotia,
New Brunswick and Quebec where the author also made many decisions and recommendations which had a direct effect on the development.
The total Canadian landings in the Atlantic region subsequently increased from 97,000 short tons in 1961 to nearly 589,320 short tons in
1968 with a landed value of approximately $12,345,000 or a processed value of about $22,800,000.
The former British Columbia whale catcher Weswhale 4, built at Tacoma in 1942 for the U.S. Navy as a YMS-class anti-submarine patrol vessel, was rebuilt, repowered and fitted with sonar and other electronic gear at Celtic Shipyard for a new career as a herring seiner. Renamed Lavallee II, she was assigned by B. C. Packers to its base at Harbour Breton, Newfoundland. The transfer was indicative of the increased interest of British Columbia fisheries firms in the lucrative herring industry of the maritime provinces. Gordon Newell, Maritime Events of 1967, H. W. McCurdy Marine History of the Pacific Northwest 1966 to 1976, p.XLV.
Where Experience Counts
Accordingly, the author met with Dunphy's Captain Sid Anderson of the "Dunville" to discuss their problems.
Captain Anderson's echo sounding charts showed extremely dense and large schools of herring but as reported, the "Dunville's" seine was too
shallow to reach the schools. The vessel could not carry a deep enough 61 seine owing to the lack of deck space aft, and the seine in use was carried on an old-fashioned seine table. Furthermore, they were not equipped with a power skiff for towing off, or a power block for hauling the seine.
The author recommended modernization of the "Dunville", which would allow a deep seine to be carried and thus produce all the herring
Dunphy's required. Midwater trawling had not advanced sufficiently to give such certainty.
Not being a purse seine specialist, the author arranged for the contracting of Captain Walter Steen, a Vancouver, British Columbia, herring
seine skipper, to supervise the modernization of the "Dunville" and teach its captain and crew the latest techniques.
It was decided also to attempt midwater trawling for herring and the Newfoundland Fisheries Development Authority provided a 60 foot, 160
h.p. longliner called the "Cape Ballard" for this purpose.
The "Dunville's" seine table was removed, the deck was squared and bulwarks were built around it to carry a longer and deeper seine. A
power block was also installed to handle the seine while a long range recording type sonar, the first of its type in Canada, was installed to locate
the herring.
The "Dunville", needless to say, was an immediate success and caught more herring off Bonne Bay than Dunphy's had dreamed of.
The "Cape Ballard" was rigged for midwater trawling and equipped with the first net sounder in North America.
Unfortunately, the trawl winch was not powerful enough to haul the trawl against a fair propeller thrust and when the propeller thrust was reduced to allow the winch to haul, the herring would swim out of the trawl. As a result, the "Cape Ballard's" catches were small with the best single
hauls yielding about 10 tons and the best day's fishing producing some 20 tons of herring, far below what the "Dunville" could do.
Exploratory Fishing
On returning to Vancouver, Walter Steen informed Ken Fraser, then Vice-President of B.C. Packers, of the herring resource around Newfoundland.
B.C. Packers were about to move their groundfish trawling operation to a new plant in Harbour Breton on Newfoundland's south coast, and a meal plant for groundfish offal was to be installed. The company was willing to install equipment for processing herring also, provided herring could be found nearer to Harbour Breton.
The author's proposal to use the "Cape Ballard" to explore for herring off the south coast of Newfoundland was subsequently accepted. Midwater trawling was considered far more suitable for such work than purse seining, since a school of fish registered on the recorder could be sampled
much quicker, no matter how deep it was. Sampling could also be carried out in rougher weather, a smaller crew could be used and the cost of repairing trawl damage was small compared to that for a purse seine.
Under command of Captain George Lace, English Harbour West, Newfoundland, with the author as project leader, the "Cape Ballard" began
exploring for herring in St. Mary's Bay in March, 1963. Working westward, every bay was searched but no significant recorder indications were seen
until the vessel reached Cape la Rune, where some indications were noted. More schools were spotted near Ramea and finally large schools were discovered from La Poile Bay to Port Aux Basque.
The recordings were verified by sampling with the trawl, which despite modifications could only catch small quantities (today the problem
can be pinpointed to insufficiently large meshes in the forebody), never exceeding two tons per haul. Nevertheless, the midwater trawl had served
its purpose and the author was able to state that the herring potential was very large.
Subsequently, B.C. Packers equipped the plant for herring reduction. They also rigged their ex-whaler "Lavallee" at Vancouver for herring
seining and sailed her around to Newfoundland. In order to stimulate what appeared to be a very promising new sector of the Atlantic fishing industry, the Industrial Development Branch chartered this vessel under command of Captain Kirk Anderson. Following some initial technical difficulties, large catches were made, thus establishing a large herring fishery on Newfoundland's south coast and encouraging development in the other provinces.
The cost to government for establishing this industry was less than $200,000. In 1961, the total Newfoundland herring catch was only 6,202 short
tons (mostly processed for human consumption). It grew to a 1968 high of approximately 160,572 tons with a landed value of approximately $3,284,000, or a processed value of about $6,900,000.
The success of the Newfoundland herring fishery developments led to the establishment of similar herring fishing industries in Nova Scotia,
New Brunswick and Quebec where the author also made many decisions and recommendations which had a direct effect on the development.
The total Canadian landings in the Atlantic region subsequently increased from 97,000 short tons in 1961 to nearly 589,320 short tons in
1968 with a landed value of approximately $12,345,000 or a processed value of about $22,800,000.
When did Kirk buy the Lavallee II?
1999
435 Griffin Drive, Corner Brook, NF Passed away suddenly on Sunday, July 18, 1999, Kirk Anderson, at the age of 72. He will be sadly missed by his loving wife of 50 years, Freda Anderson; four children: Scott (Daphne), Ralph, Kirk Jr., Nancy (Doug Forbes); grandchildren: Annie, Jillian, Amelia, Lavalee Rose, Samuel, Robert; one great granddaughter Cara; brothers: Sidney (Lucy), George (Marion); one sister Myrtle Simmonds and numerous other relatives and friends. The funeral service will be held Wednesday, July 21st at 2:00 p.m. from the Memorial United Church, Curling St., Rev. William Mercer officiating, followed by the interment at Mt. Patricia Cemetery. The family will be receiving friends at Fillatre's Funeral Home, 218 Curling Street, Tuesday from 2-4 and 7-9. As expressions of sympathy flowers or donations made to the Western Memorial Regional Hospital Chemotherapy unit will be graciously accepted.