Month: October 2010

Schooner Ernestina – “A once in the lifetime opportunity to preserve our history”

These were the words of New Bedford Mayor Scott Lang at the recent full day event charting a course for the schooner Ernestina.

It seems that the general consensus from the event is that it will take a public/private partnership to keep Ernestina afloat. The key will be to find leadership that will be able to bring together all of the various, diverse, interested parties.  The cost of rehabilitating her is between $3 – 5 million. A tall order for a tall ship.

Here’s a brief post event write up by Dan McDonald for the New Bedford Standard Times. Hundreds mull future of Schooner Ernestina Oct. 31, 2010.

Schooner Ernestina: Great video of most recent work by Boothbay Harbor Shipyard

Here’s a great video by the Boothbay Harbor Shipyard about their most recent Ernestina project. They also kept an interesting online Shipyard Log of their Ernestina work.

Help Schooner Ernestina Set Sail Again – Saturday, October 30, 2010

New Bedford Standard Times report and my friend Don Cuddy wrote a good overview of what’s going to take place on Saturday at the New Bedford Whaling Museum.

Supporters to meet to chart future of troubled Ernestina (Oct. 27, 2010)

For more information and to register for the event, visit the Sail Ernestina website or Facebook page.

This is Schooner Ernestina Week on Sea-Fever, so please make sure you check out all of the interesting and informative posts on one of the world’s most storied ships.

Great Explorers Need Great Ships: Captain Bob Bartlett and the Schooner Ernestina

Okay, this video quality is really terrible but it’s still worth watching.

Captain Bob Bartlett was an arctic explorer extraordinaire and the Schooner Ernestina (Effie M. Morrissey) was one of the great ships that made it all happen. You’ll catch some glimpses of her in this video.

Schooner Ernestina 2002 Casualty Presentation by Captain Sophie Morse at the 2003 ASTA Conference (video)

Schooner Ernestina has “educated” a lot of young people and few older ones over the years. Here’s a video of Captain Sophie Morse’s presentation at the 2003 Safety Under Sail Forum at the ASTA Conference. For professional sail trainers and mariners of all kinds, there’s a lot to learn from it.

On Saturday, October 30th the New Bedford Whaling Museum will be hosting an event to help chart a future course for the Schooner Ernestina. For more information, visit the Sail Ernestina website or Facebook page.

In honor of the grand old girl, this is Schooner Ernestina week on Sea-Fever. Navigate back here frequently and check out all of the posts!

Sail Her Home (The Schooner Ernestina Song) by the Rum Soaked Crooks

Here’s a beautiful song that was written sung by the Rum-Soaked Crooks about the Schooner Ernestina. It was performed at the recent Concert for the Seamen’s Bethel Restoration Fund. (Please Help me Help the Seamen’s Bethel – Oct. 6, 2010) It was a fun evening with great songs for a worthy cause.

On Saturday, October 30th the New Bedford Whaling Museum will be hosting an event to help chart a future course for another worthy cause, the Schooner Ernestina. For more information, visit the Sail Ernestina website or Facebook page.

What’s your Vision for Ernestina?

Schooner Ernestina

This Saturday, a crew of concerned citizens of Massachusetts and the greater maritime world are getting together to share their ideas about what might be the future of a ship that has more lives than a cat and more sea stories than a sailor. The schooner Ernestina is in dire need of help and if you are in the greater New Bedford area and care about America’s rich maritime heritage, you should attend and participate.

The event is being held on Saturday, October 30th, 2010 from 9 AM to 4 PM at the  New Bedford Whaling Museum. Pre-registration is requested. Visit the Sail Ernestina website for more information.

Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey Association Facebook page.

This week, I’m dedicating a boatload of posts to the amazing Ernestina. If you want to guest post, let me know.

Moby-Monday: A song about the thoughts of a young Moby-Dick

Last Thursday marked the first of a series of concerts organized by the Ladies Branch of the New Bedford Port Society for the Seamen’s Bethel Restoration Project Fund. It was a great evening of shanties and sea stories by Dillon Bustin and the Rum-Soaked Crooks.

Here’s a short video of a neat song that Dillon Bustin sang. It was part of a youth education program that he helped organize in which students wrote a prequel to Moby-Dick. The song give each of the characters in Herman Melville’s classic an adolescent outlook. Here’s what was doing on with Moby-Dick. (Low light video but audio is definitely worth the listen.)

The Seamen’s Bethel is one of America’s historic treasures. Hope you will consider making a donation to it’s Restoration Project Fund so that future generations will be able to experience it.  For more information or to get involved, please visit the Seamen’s Bethel website, email support@portsociety.org or call +1 508-992-3295.

State of the “Art” Anti-Submarine Warfare Simulation

Here’s an inexpensive solution to those costly naval war games that take place each year in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In fact, an argument can be made that starting this training in elementary school might give us a leg up on our underwater enemies as well as get funding back into arts education in public schools and improve cardboard recycling programs.  It looks like a win, win, win!