Ronnie MacInnis stands by his great-grandfather's desk and paybook. (CBC)

A small community on P.E.I.'s North Shore is looking back to its role in the search for Sir John Franklin, whose expedition to find a northwest passage disappeared in the Arctic Ocean in 1845.

In the mid-19th century St. Peters was a busy shipbuilding centre, and in 1851 it launched the Auxiliary Steamship Isabel.

"She was described as a rugged vessel," said Ronnie MacInnis. The Isabel was built in the shipyard owned by his great-grandfather, Hilary McIsaac.

Rather than wood, the Isabel had a wrought-iron frame. The 180-ton brigantine was designed for the journey of a lifetime. She first went to London to be further reinforced. Then in 1852, she was sent to the Arctic on an expedition to find the lost ships of explorer Sir John Franklin.

A contemporary newspaper account called it one of the strongest vessels to have ever been sent to the Arctic region.

"Certainly it was a crowning achievement for the area at the time to have it selected by the British government to go to the north," said MacInnis.

The Isabel made it to the northern coast of Baffin Island, but no further. There are reports that a subsequent attempt to reach the Bering Strait resulted in a mutiny by the crew. They said the ship was unsuitable for Arctic conditions.

Two years later, the ship returned to England, and was eventually sold to a Scottish sailor.

Little is known about the ship after 1880, but to the people of St. Peters Isabel is still a testament to shipbuilding in the area.