Conference unifix::sailing

44.0. "Maine Maritime Museum" by MOTHER::BERENS () Wed Aug 08 1984 09:41

The Maine Maritime Museum in Bath is well worth a visit. I think that 
the museum is fairly new. It is on the site of what was once one of the 
largest wooden ship building yards in the US. At the museum are the 
Sherman Zwicker, a 1942 Nova Scotia Grand Banks dory schooner, the 
Bowdoin, Admiral McMillan's Arctic exploration schooner, the Seguin, an 
1884 steam tug, and various other exhibits. The restoration of the 
Bowdoin is nearing completion (she was supposed to have been launched in 
June). The Seguin is essentially dismantled for major hull work (looks 
like when they get done the hull will be essentially new -- when does a 
restoration become rebuilding or even new construction?). 

If you think that your job is tough, try Grand Banks dory fishing in 
winter. 10000 calories a day barely keeps body and soul together. And 
the dories are small! When salting the fish, the schooners would stay on 
the banks for weeks at a time. The museum has two or three films (old) 
showing dory fishing. The dories would go out in seas and winds that 
look to be near gale conditions. The Zwicker fished the banks until 
1968.

Another excellent museum is the Atlantic fisheries museum in Lunenberg,
Nova Scotia. There is another large Grand Banks schooner (the last one 
built) there, the Theresa Conner (she never lost a man). Her last trip 
to the banks was also in the 60s.

The Maine Maritime Museum has been around for many years. From the description
in this note it sounds like you only saw a small part of the museum. It also
includes many buildings in downtown Bath, housing the usual collection of 
paintings and photos.

To me the most interesting aspect of the Maine Maritime Museum is its
Apprenticeshop program for wooden boat building. They have lots of interesting
small boat building projects, often have VERY nice traditional small boats
for sale, and have a great library of wood boat lore.

(They also just bought a couple DECmates)

For two interesting novels you might try Sterling Hayden's "Wanderer",
a partial autobiography including his days as a doryman, and "1896",
a story of Yankee values, scial reform and iron ships 'round the horn.
The "Balclutha" in San Francisco is a floating museum of this era,
worth the time if you have an afternoon to spare.