Dowager Queen traces the story of the Hudson's Bay Company's SS Beaver, a small steam vessel that played an outsized role in opening and connecting British Columbia's rugged coastline. The narrative frames the ship within the era's engineering advances and the commerce that sustained remote settlements.

The book details the Beaver's many duties—charting coastlines, carrying freight and officials, supporting trade, and acting as a lifeline for isolated communities—and explains how practical maritime technology met difficult coastal conditions.

Readers with an interest in Pacific Northwest maritime history, nautical engineering, or the Hudson's Bay Company will find close accounts of voyages and the later life of the vessel, including the 1986 exact replica and its retraced coastal trips under Captain William A. Hagelund.

• Publisher: Hancock House (2003)
• Format: Paperback, 166 pages
• ISBN: 9780888394866 / 0888394861

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