Shipwreck on Kootenay Lake, The Story of the S.S. City of Ainsworth

This 103 page, soft-cover book was published in 2000 with the financial assistance of  The Kootenay Lake Environmental Education Centre Society.  Proceeds from the sale of this book go to that society for work on local historical and environmental projects.

This fascinating story covers the working life of the City of Ainsworth and gives readers a real sense of the days when travel around Kootenay Lake meant travel by boat.  In 1898, after six years of service plagued with difficulty and scandal, the little sternwheeler sank during an early winter gale with an unprecedented loss of nine lives.

Susan’s book spans more than one hundred years and documents the modern day search for the historic vessel.  Efforts to locate the City of Ainsworth took place over two decades. In the end it required twentieth century technology developed for Canada’s space program to get Kootenay Lake to give up her nineteenth century sunken treasure.

To obtain a copy of Shipwreck on Kootenay Lake, send $20, (includes postage and handling) The Kootenay Lake Environmental Education Centre Society, Box 20, Crawford Bay, BC, Canada, V0B 1E0