Alligator boat

John Ceburn West traveled north to see Jackson's loggers at work and began to sketch and develop a plan.

West & Peachey built 230 alligator tugs between 1889 and 1932 for customers across Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, the Yukon and the northern United States from Maine to Wisconsin.

The largest alligator was the Mistango built by Captain John A. Clark for service on Lake Nipissing which was over 66 feet in length and required a crew of eleven.

[3] Alligators were scow-shaped, shallow-draft tugs, fitted with side-mounted paddle wheels, powered by a 20-horsepower steam engine and provided with a cable winch and large anchor.

The Alligator tug extended the social and economic stability provided by the timber industry and supported the populating of this vast region.

Surviving remains of an alligator tug have been the subject of a contested restoration effort in Northern Ontario between the Connaught and District Historical Society and another interest group.