4 minute read
Resurrection of the Victoria High School Steam Engine
The Troy Steam Engine was installed at Victoria High School in 1914, the year it opened, and heated the school until it was replaced in the late 1920s.
Victoria High School, where it sits today, began construction in 1914 and opened its doors to students in 1916.
One of the most important facets of this project was the state-of-the-art heating system that was installed and necessary to heat a building of this size. A piece of that heating system is still on site and continues to be in working order where it resides on the fourth floor of Victoria High, the Troy Steam Engine.
In 1914, the Troy Steam Engine began its duties in the existing boiler room driving the air compressor which supplied heating control air for the buildings.
The steam engine was replaced in the late 1920’s with an air compressor driven by an electric motor. The engine sat idle and neglected until 1946 when it was moved to the machine shop classroom at Fairey Technical building just west of the main Victoria High building. The machine shop students used this engine as a display and teaching aide from that time until 1986 when chief engineer Jim Connor requested permission from the machine shop teacher Bud Brice to move the engine back “home” to the main building boiler room. The request was granted and a five-year project began.
The engine was dismantled down to the flywheel and moved over by the custodial personnel to its original location. During the following five years, the steam engine was slowly assembled and restored as time permitted. On November 15, 1991, the original steam engine came to life again and was restored to operating condition… but not without its moans and groans.
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Erv Parent Co. Ltd. 791 Caldew Street, Delta, BC Tel: 604-525-4142 www.ervparent.com Chief engineer Connor recalls, “I wanted to hook it up to steam again.” This is the basic steam engine that ran the trains and the boats that opened this country up, and here it is for all to see. The engine is the only one of its kind in working order in any Vancouver Island School, and possibly all of B.C.
Jim Connor laughs when he tells the story about starting the steam engine up for the first time.
“There were several water leaks, water gushing out all over… it was running like a broken radio.”
Connor ended up putting out a call for help to power engineers who were qualified to work in steam plants, as well as calls outside Canada. The Saanich Historical Artifacts Steam Engineers were one of the groups that were extremely helpful and knowledgeable.
Connor remembers how wonderful people were that helped with this restoration.
“This project has developed into an operating steam engine only because of the contributions from many people supplying time, expertise, and encouragement. Providing special tools, cylinder oil valve rod packing, pouring and fitting of babbit bearing, welding and pipe fittings, as well as help with a phone call to Ernst Gage Co. of New York City was necessary and important for the final restoration of an engine that was without steam for 65 years.” After about a month or so, the engine ran like a Swiss clock.
For the next number of years, this steam engine was used for teaching and demonstrating purposes, particularly for employees of School District #61 (Victoria) who were students of the Power Engineering Program at Camosun College.
In 2009, the steam engine was moved out of the boiler room and relocated for display to the fourth floor of Victoria High. Ernie Wirtanen, a 1937 graduate of Victoria High School, provided the funding for a wooden and glass cabinet and an electric motor that still runs the engine weekly by the current chief engineer, Zain Jaison.
Chief engineer Jim Connor has long since retired as an engineer, but still actively and enthusiastically works with Debbie Blacky in the Victoria High School Archives located on the main floor of Victoria High. n
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In 2009, the steam engine was moved out of the boiler room and relocated for display to the fourth floor of Victoria High.
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