In many respects the "W. T. Preston" is similar to the "Samson V", a former Canadian Department of Public Works snagboat now preserved as a museum in New Westminster, British Columbia. Sternwheeler machinery was simple and rugged and often outlasted the shallow-draughted hulls of the vessels. When the "Samson V" was built in 1937 it incorporated engines and a paddlewheel shaft from the "Samson II" of 1905, A-frame crane components from the "Samson III" of 1914 and the steam-winch from the "Samson IV" of 1924. Like the "W. T. Preston", the "Samson V" maintained waterways for navigation and when retired in 1980, she was the last steam-powered paddlewheeler running in Canada.