SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS SPUN YARN
Irving and Exy Johnson Honored in New Brigantines
The National Maritime Heritage Act, established in 1994, provided for federal funding for maritime heritage projects from the scrappi ng of ships in the US National Defense Reserve Fleet. That source has dried up and the National Maritime Alliance, under the leadership ofTim Runyan of East Carolina Universiry, is seeking to have the grants funded through the historic preservation section of the Conservation and Reinvestment Act, which gets monies from offshore drilling. NMA' s goal is to include in CARA an amendment to fund the NMHA. To help support the amendment, please write to your Congressmen asking them to support the National Maritime Heritage Act amendment to CARA. (NMA, c/o Dr. Timothy Runyan, Maritime History & Nautical Archaeology Program, East Carolina University, Greenville NC 27858-4353) ... The Sydney Heritage Fleet's four-year restoration of the hark fames Craig is reaching its culmination (see Sea History 83 for the ship's history and the restoration work). The 124-year-old vessel made its first voyage in 75 years under her own sail power on 12 August 2000. In December the ship will go on public display, and it is planned to take her to sea every Saturday with up to 100 passengers, as well as to use her as an entertainment venue and for school overnights. With her expected restricted survey (Class 1C) she will be allowed to take passengers to sea within 30 nautical miles of shore. Qames Craig Restoration Division , Sydney Heritage Fleet, PO Box 431, Rozelle NSW 2039; e-mail: jamescraig@seaheritage.asn.au; web site: www.seaheritage.asn.au/jamescraig/index .cfm) .. . At the San Diego Maritime Museum , the little wooden workhorse Pilot, whi ch carried generations of harbor
T he keels of the Los Angeles Maritime lnstitute's two 90-foot brigantines were laid in February in the San Pedro district of Los Angeles. The new vessels will be named for Irving and Exy Johnson, who took yo ung people to sea as crew under sail aboard their three Yankees and served as inspiration ro today's sail training movement. T he communi ty boatworks is visitor friendly and set up as a living history exhibit of the museum. As of midAugust, builder Allen Rawl had erected 38 of 51 frames, and the lead ballast was being fitted. The launch is scheduled for Summer 2001. The TopSail Youth Program, which received, amo ng other awards, the National Maritime Historical Society's Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Maritime Education , has served thousands of Southern California's at- risk yo uth by taking them off their "turf" and onto the ocean in a demanding sailing environment where they are guided and tested by the fair, consistent and logical rules of nature. Founded by Capt. Jim Gladso n, the program provided over 8800 yo uth days of sailing and logged over 4 5 ,000 job-specific, documented volunteer hours in 1999. While the vessels are being built, LAMI's programs are proceeding aboard the Bill ofRights and Swift ofIpswich. To date, $ 1.5 milli on has been provided for the project by organizations such as the Crail-Johnson The Irving Johnson and Exy Johnso n rise on the ways in San Pedro. Foundation, the Harriet Glickman Foundation for Children, the Constellation Foundation, the Co nfidence Foundation, the Jero me Foundation, Home Depot, IBM and private donors. A total budget of $5.62 million will be needed for construction and initial outfitting of the two vessels. !. (LAMI, Berth 84, Foot of Sixth Street, San Pedro CA 90731; 3 10 833-6055; fax: 310 548-2055; web site: www.brigantineboatworks.com)
James Craig motors in Sydney Harbor and,
a few weeks Later, steps out under sail power. (Photos: Sydney Heritage Fleet web site)
SEA HISTORY 94, AUTUMN 2000
pilots in San Diego Bay, is undergoing restoration. Launched in 1914, the 52foot vessel was the first auxiliary power boat in San Diego and is believed to have had the longest working life of any vessel in the Western H emisphere. The restored Pilot will become an operating platform for
a middle-school program that puts environmental issues in an historical co ntext. (SDMM, 1306 North Harbor Drive, San Diego CA 92101; 619 234-9153; web si te: www.sdmaritime.com) ... In May 2000 an application for the destruction of the clipper ship City of Adelaide was fi led with the Planning Committee of North Ayrshire Council in Scotland. The Scottish Maritime Museum, which owns the ship, does not have the funds to restore the clipper nor to maintain her in the hopes of funding becoming available. To leave her in her present condition for one year would cost approximately ÂŁ 100,000, while a complete restoration is estimated at ÂŁ5 milli on. Built in England in 1864, she carried passengers and general cargo between London and Australia and later served in the coal trade, in the North Atlantic timber trade,
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