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9. ANDREW LAIRD LaBORDE It is with great regret that we report the extremely sudden and unexpec­ ted passing of member Andy LaBorde, age 53, on March 12, 2005, whilst attending the "Annual Midwinter Steamboat Conference" on March 12 at Grosse Ile (Detroit). Andy had been a T. M. H. S. member for some 30 years, and carried membership card no. 477. Memorial services were held at Milwaukee, where Andy resided, on March 19. Andy was a staunch supporter of T. M. H. S. and a contributor to "Scanner". He was particularly known for his videos filmed aboard lake vessels. He is survived by a large family circle and his dog Sarah, to all of whom we extend our most sincere sympathy. * * * * * Some thoughts on the above. Recently, we have been losing more members than we have been gaining. We would like to challenge each of our members to seek out a new prospective member so that our numbers can be replenished. We also would encourage members to consider bequests to the Society in their perso­ nal arrangements. * * * * * CANADIAN LIBERTIES ON THE LAKES In 2004, member Skip Gillham published his book Liberties on the Lakes, which documented the many U. S. -built Liberty ships which came into the lakes after the Seaway opened. As a follow-up, he now has produced Canadian Liber­ ties on the Lakes, a 47-page softcover documenting the many Canadian-built Fort and Park class steamers which survived the hostilities and came to the lakes in the 1960s. There are 58 photographs. Interested parties should address Skip Gillham, P. O. Box 443, Vineland, On­ tario LOR 2C0. The price is $16. 00 Canadian to Canadian addresses, or U. S. $16. 00 to U. S. addresses. * * * * * CANADA STEAMSHIP LINES' SHIP GUTTED ON THE STOCKS "The interior of the steamship under construction at Lauzon, Q u e ., for Cana­ da Steamship Lines, Ltd., was gutted by a fire of unknown origin which swept the vessel's three cabin decks on Jan. 24. The fire is stated to have been discovered shortly after 2: 30 a. m., near a doorway on the upper cabin deck, and the flames spread with great rapidity through the cabins in which the wood finishing and decorative work was in various stages of progress. Disco­ very of the outbreak was made about 25 minutes after the last watchman had punched his clock after going his rounds. While every effort was made by the Levis Fire Brigade and yard staff to extinguish the fire, so fierce were the flames and so rapidly did they spread, that the whole interior of the ship was practically gutted, and the work of 4 months wiped out. The loss is re­ ported to be be covered by insurance, but the fire will prevent delivery of the ship in June, as was intended. "The new ship, to be named the St. Laurent, or the ST. LAWRENCE, was placed under construction in Aug., 1926, to run on the Montreal-Saguenay run in conjunction with the s. s. RICHELIEU... The engines, boilers and other... machinery had not been installed, consequently the loss, although heavy, is not so large as would otherwise have been the case. It was expected that the ship would have been launched complete in May, but for the fitting-out process, so as to place her on the route in June. " The above is from the February, 1927, issue of "Canadian Railway and Marine World". ST. LAWRENCE was completed on time, and served the C. S. L. Saguenay service through the 1965 season. * * * * *