What’s 27 metres long, can carry 14 full-sized vehicles and helps you save on gas? Why the Brady E. Himmelman, of course!
Our favourite river crosser is currently on hiatus from its Sisyphean task for at least 6-8 weeks as it embarks on a cableless journey to Meteghan for its five-year refit mandated by Transport Canada.
Let’s take this time to remember the namesake of our beloved vessel.
Brady E. Himmelman was born in LaHave during the height of the First World War and came of age during the Second World War. He enlisted in the RCAF Marine Division, where he captained rescue and supply boats between Newfoundland and Cape Breton.
After the war, Brady was the obvious choice to take over the family ferry business, having rowed the boat back and forth with his father as a teenager.
Brady captained the ferry for 35 years, from 1948 until 1983.
In the early years, the service operated with a scow and a Cape Islander, charging just 50 cents per car. (The ferry is the only thing that’s gotten cheaper since 1980.)
The agreement was for the province to provide the barge and Brady to provide the boat. It was the beginnings of the subsidized service that would ensure residents could cross the river year-round.
We have Brady to thank for our modern ferry service. He saw the operation through the ups and downs, from the provincial threat to cut funding to the addition of the cable in 1980.
In 2010, the province christened the new ferry in his honour. Brady passed away shortly after, in 2013, at the age of 95. His obituary notes his reputation for cultivating healthy strawberry and turnip crops and his shared love of music with his wife, Ramona.
Thanks for this article about my father. It was appreciated by my mom and sisters!
Rhonda Himmelman