This sturdy scow was propelled by a 20-horsepower steam engine that drove the two side-paddlewheels. This same engine also operated a heavy winch, geared 6 to 1, which translated to a pull or strain on the cable of 100-horsepower. The Clyde4 marine-design boiler was hung horizontally on a pivot or axle in the centre. A screw arrangement on the front of the boiler enabled the fireman to tip the boiler forward or backward, so that it would always remain level as the tug was winched up and down hillsides. The boiler, if kept supplied with three-quarters of a standard cord of 4-foot wood, could supply enough steam to warp for 10 hours.
On Thursday, April 4, 1889, as black smoke rose from the stack of the tug in the factory yard, the first Alligator tug sat ready for launch. The mayor of Simcoe had declared that the occasion warranted a school holiday and an expectant horde of school children lined the riverbank. A large crowd of local citizens had joined them as the final preparations were being made. Rollers were placed under the runners of the Alligator tug, and as the cable, anchored to a tree on the opposite stream bank, tightened on the revolving winch, she moved majestically across the yard and splashed into the waters of Crystal Lake, (now Lake George) to the cheers of the onlookers. The next issue of the British Canadian, printed the next day, reported that: “the novel sight of the steamboat hunting for water attracted hundreds of people on Thursday, who witnessed the launch. It was a banner day for the West & Peachey firm, the people of Simcoe, and ultimately the lumber interests the Alligator was designed to serve.”
The tug passed its tests as to operation of its machinery and manoeuvrability with flying colours. Joseph Jackson, proud owner of the first Alligator, was on hand on Saturday, April 13, 1889, as she winched herself out of Crystal Lake to move out onto Union Street and head west to the station of the Georgian Bay and Lake Erie Railway. Deadbolts had been previously buried at strategic locations along the route for this very purpose. Here, to the applause of the assembled spectators, the Alligator winched herself slowly up the street and into place on the bed of a waiting flatcar, to be secured for her long journey north. In reporting the event the Norfolk Reformer, on Friday, April 19, 1889, announced: “Mr. Jackson is greatly delighted with the success of his idea in tug building and anticipates that the unique craft will be of immense service to him in his woods handling round timber.”
John West and Joseph Jackson accompanied the Alligator Warping Tug to North Bay where it was unloaded and steamed through the French and Restoule rivers to the Jackson timber limits. Here they carried out rigorous tests of the tug’s capabilities. Jackson was delighted with the Alligator’s performance. He penned the following testimonial at a later date:
The Alligator far exceeds my most sanguine expectations, it having transported itself over hills and hollows any and all distances between lakes or streams and is capable of surmounting almost any difficulty in its way and I have no hesitation in saying that the equal of these boats made by Messrs. West and Peachey for the purpose they are intended for is not on the globe today and I recommend them to one and all requiring such steam power.5
A detailed drawing by John West showing the placement of all machinery in the Alligator Warping Tug, which accompanied his application for patents submitted on September 10, 1890.
Courtesy of Eva Brook Donly Museum, Norfolk Historical Society Archives, West & Peachey Collection.
Joseph Jackson continued to operate a successful timber operation until 1892, when he returned to Simcoe, to be appointed sheriff of Norfolk County. In the meantime the Alligator Warping Tugs were about to revolutionize the inland logging industry. They would not only save time and labour for the lumber barons of Ontario and Quebec, but they would reduce costs of harvest and extend the areas that were economically available for the harvest of pine.
On September 11th, 1889, John West wrote the following description of his warping tug, Alligator #1:
The invention is a warping tugboat which is arranged to propel itself overland from one lake to another by means of a steel wire cable or chain or rope anchored to a tree, rock or warping anchor. This hull may be constructed either round or square at the bow and stern, with a flat bottom having two runners or keels shod with iron. It has two rudders and two side paddle- wheels which are hung on an A-frame and are raised or lowered by two screws. The boiler is hung on an axle and is kept level by a screw located at the front end of the boiler. The engine is double geared to a steel drum, 3 feet in diameter by 30 inches long, on which the cable winds when crossing portages or warping. The paddle-wheels are driven by a chain which is thrown in or out of gear at will.6
From this description it would appear that Alligator #1 differed in some respects from later warping tugs produced by the firm. West notes that the paddles are driven by a chain rather than by gears, as is shown in the official patent of September 10, 1890. Also the two side paddlewheels are hung in an A-frame and can be raised or lowered by two screws. (See Appendix B.)
It was soon obvious, after the completion of trials, that a strong market for the Alligator existed, and John West applied for patents for the warping tug. He obtained a Canadian patent in 1890, and in 1891 received American patents for the warping tug, as well. On November 29, 1890, John West sold a half interest in his new improved Alligator Steam Warping Tug patent for $1.00 to his partner James Peachey, making them joint owners of the patent.7
Optimistic estimates were made in 1894 that a thousand Alligators would be required to fill the demand for the warping tugs in inland lake areas. Although this estimate was too high, nevertheless the Alligator was soon to become a household word both in Simcoe and the vast pine forests of Ontario, Quebec, and beyond.
Although John West was very much involved in the many projects being undertaken in their foundry and later in the birth of his unique invention — the amphibious Alligator Warping Tug — he always had time to assist with engineering problems that might be experienced in his hometown. Whenever problems of an engineering nature arose, John West would be the first to be consulted. He was always conscious of his civic duties and took a special interest in fire protection in the town. As a result, on March 7, 1887, John West was appointed engineer of the local fire brigade at a salary of $40 per annum.
In 1889, the town of Simcoe was in the market for a steam fire-engine. The committee of the town council had considered four different makes and had narrowed their choice down to buying either a single large Ronald Engine1 or two smaller and less expensive Waterous engines from Brantford. The committee was leaning toward the Ronald Engine, which would provide significant initial savings in cost. The proponents of the Waterous Engine, at the council meeting of May 27, 1889, brought John West to a meeting to give his opinion of the relative merits of the two engines.
In addressing council, West demonstrated the difference between the pump valves of the Waterous and the Ronald engines. West favoured the Waterous engine, as its valves would not be affected by the sand that was present in the water in Simcoe’s wells, whereas the valves of the Ronald Engine would be. He also saw as a serious defect, the fact that the Ronald Engine was often likely to stop on dead centre,2 whereas the Waterous Engine would not. On the strength of West’s testimony, council voted six to five in favour of purchasing two Waterous fire engines. They served the town well for many years.
About a year or so later the town fathers appointed a committee of William Burt, John Sutton, and F.A. Brown, all local citizens, to find a qualified head of the local fire department. They drew up terms of reference for such a position and recommended John West. On February 8, 1890, West agreed to their