Mar 7, 2022

Nine British Columbians and two organizations are being recognized for outstanding achievements in BC’s marine sector by the Maritime Museum’s annual SS BEAVER Medal Awards. The Lieutenant Governor, the Honourable Janet Austin, OBC, will present the awards at Government House in Victoria on Thursday, March 17, 2022.

SS BEAVER Medals will be presented to 2021 recipients on March 17, 2022.
Image courtesy of the Maritime Museum of BC.

The Winners

The aim of the SS BEAVER Medal is to recognize extraordinary contributions by British Columbians in many marine-related fields. Presentations are normally done annually but were deferred in 2020 because of public health restrictions; both the 2021 and 2020 recipients will be honoured together.

2021 recipients are:

Inspector Kenneth Burton RCMP (Ret’ d), for community service and leadership in RCMP Marine Search and Rescue, contributions to BC’s maritime heritage as Executive Director of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, and for his voyage through the Northwest Passage in RCMP Patrol Vessel Nadon in 2000.

Margaret and Martyn Clark, mariners for mentorship of British Columbia youth by imparting life skills and knowledge about voyaging under sail.

Ian Maxwell, entrepreneur for revitalizing ship repair and maintenance by Point Hope Shipyard and partnership with the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations to establish Salish Sea Industrial Services.

Robert Turner, maritime and land transportation historian for his decades of documenting our Province’s maritime past and his distinguished work in heritage preservation.

Special award to Allied Shipbuilding Limited of North Vancouver, a shipbuilding institution since 1948 that has produced a variety of vessels including icebreakers, ice-capable supply vessels, fishing vessels, ferries, log barges, tug boats, and patrol craft for the RCMP and Canadian Coast Guard

2020 recipients are:

Gregory Marshall, resident of Saanichton, for the design of large motor yachts for the highly competitive international market. Greg Marshall has been involved in the design of over 400 vessels.

Gordon Miller, resident of Vancouver, for extraordinary contributions to our understanding of seafaring in the past through meticulous depictions of early European voyages to the northwest cast and of the maritime fur trade.

Captain William Noon, resident of Victoria, for his achievements in a 38 year career with the Canadian Coast Guard including several seasons in command of an icebreaker supporting the search for the Franklin expedition ships and for his outstanding volunteer work with Classic Boat Festival in Victoria.

Captain David (Duke) Snider, resident of Saanich, for outstanding achievements in polar navigation including roles in promoting internationally recognized ice navigation qualifications and as the author of a standard polar ice guidebook, and a long career with the Canadian Coast Guard that included command of eight vessels. Captain Snider’s professional excellence and widespread engagement has exemplified the global outlook and impact of BC mariners.

The 2020 Special Category Award is to the Underwater Archaeological Society of BC (UASBC), for promoting underwater archaeology along BC’s coasts and interior by surveying and documenting shipwrecks and First Nations archaeology, publishing books and a quarterly about BC’s marine heritage, teaching international archaeological standards, and cooperating with the Province’s Archaeology Branch.

Nominations for the award of the Maritime Museum of BC SS BEAVER Medal for Maritime Excellence are submitted by the public. They are then evaluated through a rigorous screening process. The award itself is a gold-plated medal cast from materials salvaged front the wreck of the pioneering SS BEAVER mounted in a small display case. The Hudson’s Bay Company SS BEAVER was the first steam-powered ship on the west coast of North America and operated for 52 years along BC’s coast until grounding in 1888. The awards are presented by the Lieutenant Governor in her capacity as Honorary Patron of the Museum.