In 1923 "Hochelaga", operated by Hochelaga Shipping and Towing Co., of Halifax, became a Pictou–Charlottetown ferry. It was sold again in 1942 to Thomas C. Wilwerth of New York, who attempted to change the vessel's coal-fired steam engines to modern oil-burning ones at Sullivan Shipyard in Brooklyn. When the US government took over the yard as part of the war effort, Wilwerth was forced to move the vessel on his own, but this proved too difficult and he took "Hochelaga" to Todd Shipyards to complete the conversion. It was during this period that the United States Coast Guard inspected the vessel and found several plates needed to be replaced and the number of crew increased to 24. On 3 July 1943, the vessel was seized by the United States Marshals Service due to unpaid bills. "Hochelaga" was in turn sold to a subsidiary of the United Fruit Company for use in the sugar trade with Puerto Rico. The United Fruit Company sold the vessel at the end of the war.