The W.N. Twolan

The W.N. Twolan is a tugboat currently laid up in the Port Lands of Toronto. It is unknown if and when this boat will resume operations, so best to err on the side of caution and assume that this is an active vessel. However, it hasn’t been in operation since 2012, and so is very open to exploration in the mean time. Access inside is difficult but not impossible if you use your brain, not your brawl.

The following is from the Great Lakes Tugs and Workboats database:

Built in Lauzon, Quebec by Davie Shipbuilding, this large tug was delivered to the Government of Canada in 1962 as the W.N. Twolan. The government operated the Twolan out of Churchill, Manitoba until 1986, when McKeil Marine acquired the tug and began using her on the Great Lakes. Buchanan Forest Products bought the Twolan from McKeil in 1995 and paired her with the lumber barge McAllister 132. Operations for Buchanan ended in 2008, and the tug and barge were laid up in Thunder Bay. In 2011, she was chartered out to Les Grains Lac Superior Ltee. and placed back in service handling grain barges, mostly on the Seaway, and laying up in Toronto when not needed.

The W.N. Twolan last operated in 2012 and has been laid up in Toronto ever since.

Type: Twin Screw Tugboat Year Built: 1962 Builder: George T. Davie & Co., Lauzon, QC Engines: 2 Stork-Werkspoor TMAS-278 Horsepower: 2,200 bhp Length: 106′ 00″ Breadth: 29′ 05″ Depth: 15′ 00″ Port of Registry: Montreal, QC