MV William Carson

Marine Atlantic, its predecessor CN Marine, and pre-confederation Newfoundland coastal boats have a strong and proud history serving the people of Atlantic Canada through ferry terminals, passenger vessels and rail service.

In this blog posting we highlight the MV William Carson, which served the Port aux Basques-North Sydney crossing, and later the Labrador coastal service from 1955-1977. It was the first ferry built to carry both passengers and cars to and from Newfoundland.

Named after the prominent 19th century Newfoundland politician the vessel measured 351 feet in length; when introduced it was the biggest ferry of its time. The MV William Carson could accommodate an estimated 262 passengers, six tandem trucks and 600 tonnes of cargo.