Today, the Vicrory Chimes takes on passengers, who Learn the ropes and haul on Lines in Penobscot Bay. (Photo: Courtesy Capt. Kip Files) Captain Wiffiam Seaford Stevens, master of the Vicrory Chimes during WWII, joins current captain Kip Files at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. (Photo: Paul De Gaeta)
Vicrory C him es was towed to Chesapeake Bay in 1999for her centennial celebration in her home waters. (Photo: Jesse Briggs) and a saving in fuel consumpti on . All along the coast of Maine, through the Cape Cod Canal, an overnight srop in New Bedford and up Long Island Sound, whenever passing vessels hai led us in surprise, Captain Lane Briggs identified us over the radio as the sailing tug "with a tall ship on a short hawser." For commuters on the East Side drive, it was a rare sight ro see this duo proceeding down the river, flying along with the current, eager ro find a berth in New York before an expectedsrorm blew in. Under way a few days later, we battled headwinds down the New Jersey shore, tackin g in unison with the Rebel, until the welcome sight of the entrance ro Delaware Bay brought the Victory Chimes back in ro sheltered waters. After a brief srop in Wilmingron, it was on through the C&D canal ro Baltimore. Captain Briggs, on the Rebel, announ ced the crossing of the line inro the C hesapeake with a roast ro the hom ecoming of a great lady, and it was an emotional moment for all on board. By the end of Ocrober, she was safely berthed at the C hesapeake Bay Maritime Museum where she spent the winter in a new role-an attraction vessel open for deck rours, alongside the bugeyes, skipjac ks and log canoes which form the museum's collection of native C hesapeake Bay vessels. It was a collaboration between a privately owned vessel anda museum that should be repeated here, and at other mu-
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seums. According ro John Valliant, president of the museum, it was a symbiotic arrangement that worked well for both parties and they wou ld like ro do it again. There was a definite increase in visirors to the museum, and the vessel was spared the harsh winter in Maine. On 15 April the Victory Chimes (ex Edwin and Maud) had a birthday celebration which was attended by over 600 people from her past, present and probably her future as well. There were many former passengers and crew members, 30 of whom stayed on board and represented between them over 450 weeks of sailing time. There were five descendants of ram-designer ] . M. C. Moore, and relatives of George Phillips, in whose shipyard she was built. Even Capt. W illiam S. Stevens, who sailed her during the war patrolling for mines, was there. Asked how she had changed sin ce he last srood on her decks, he said: "She is a whole lot cleaner." Keynote speaker Capt. Jan Miles of Pride ofBaltimore II spoke of the incredible rebirth ofbui lding traditional wooden vessels in the last few years. But what of the truly hisroric privately owned vessels that continue ro make a living under sail alonel There are 40 sailin g vessels on the list of National Hisroric Landmarks. (Victory Chimes earned this distinction in 1997 .) Fifteen of these are listed as srationary "museum exhibits." Of the remainder, five
are operated by nonprofit groups as sai l training and/or education vessels, and nine are privately owned and earning their way carrying passengers in the remarkable fleet of the Penobscot Bay windjammers. On some occasions it is possible ro see the schooners Steven Taberand Lewis R. French (both 1871), the Grace Bailey (1882), the Isaac Evans (1886) and the Victory Chimes, as well as others from the earl y 20th century all under sai l rogether. The long hisrory and continued prosperiry of these hardy survivors from the true age of working sail should be recognized and honored, and not lost in the excitement of the modern educational missions of the "h isroric" replicas. It should also be noted that it is the passenger trade which has made possible their long lifespans. Quite simply, it is a continuation of the hisrorical and ongoing struggle ro make a living from and on the sea. So congratu lations ro Victory Chimes and her owners and may she sail ano ther century carrying her appreciative "cargo" ro the beautiful harbors of Penobscot and Chesapeake Bays, givi ng another generation the chance ro understand and enjoy a part of America's extraordinarily diverse maritime hisrory. J, Alix T Thorne, spending her summers in Penobscot Bay, has spent many enjoyable days admiring Vicrory Chimes and other historic vessels. While supporting the educational mission ofthe replica schooners Harvey Gamage and Spirit of Massachuserrs as president of the Ocean Classroom Foundation, she owes her interest in maritime history to those original vessels.
SEA HISTORY 93, SUMMER 2000