Chief Wawatam was designed to break ice with her bow propeller, which could both propel the boat and take water out from underneath the ice to allow it to be broken through by force of gravity from the weight of the ship.
The Chief Wawatam was designed with a specific mechanism that combined propulsion and ice-breaking capabilities. The bow propeller acted as both a means of forward movement and a tool for breaking through ice by removing water underneath it, allowing the ship to navigate through frozen waterways.