OFF TO FIDDLER'S GREEN Peter J. Finnerty (1942-2007) Peter]. Finnerry, NMHS Dinner Committee Member and active supporter of the Society and a key contributor to US maritime policy legislation for more than three decades, died in February. He was 64. Finnerry spent most of his career with SeaLand Service, where he spent 30 years in various capacities, including Washington-based vice president of government relations. He was renowned for his knowledge of and skill in navigating the complicated legislative and regulatory issues involving the US merchant marine. Finnerry served as executive vice president of American Roll-On Roll-Off Carrier and later became president and owner of American International Car Carrier. Finnerty held leadership positions with numerous professional organizations, including the Propeller C lub of the United Stares, the Navy League of the United Stares, the Naval War College Foundation, and the American Maritime Congress. He was the gracious and wirry Master of Ceremonies at the US Coast Guard Foundation Dinner for over twenty years . A graduate of the State Universiry of New York Maritime College at Fort Schuyler, Finnerry earned his MBA from the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania and a doctorate from Georgetown Universiry Law Center. In addition to his academic achievements, he also held a third mare's license and was a lieutenant, junior grade, in the US Naval Reserve. "For more than 30 years, Peter was an effective advocate for the US merchant marine,'' said Raymond Ebeling, chairman and chief executive of American Roll-On Roll-Off Carrier. Peter Finnerry, who is survived by his wife Tory and his four children, "was a great friend and an all-around Peter J Finnerty great guy who will be deeply missed," NMHS chairman emeritus Howard Slotnick stated.
Harry E. Vinall III (1934-2007) Harry E. Vinall III, 72, a long-rime Trustee of National Maritime Historical Sociery who then served as an Honorary Trustee, died 2 March. He and his wife Carol were founding members of the Charles Point Council, the NMHS chapter of the Hudson River Valley. He was also a member of the Hudson River Maritime Museum, Mystic Seaport Museum, rhe International Yacht Resroration School (IYRS), and a former member of the Poughkeepsie Yacht C lub and the Antique and Classic Boat Society. He was also a founding member of the National Army Museum. Mr. Vinall served in the United States Signal Corp from 1957 to 1959 and felt privileged to participate in some very early launchings of Army Ballistic Missiles at Cape Canaveral under the leadership of Dr. Werner Von Braun. Vinall was the golf pro and operator of Vassar Golf Course in Poughkeepsie for fortyfour years, having ass umed responsibiliry upon the death of his father. Golf was his business, but wooden boats and marine preservation were his passion. Vinall was deeply interested in maritime history and wooden boat restoration; he enjoyed cruising his 1955 wooden classic Chris Craft, Rum Runner. He and Carol also enjoyed sailing small boats in the Florida Keys during the Harry E. Vinall winter. Survived by his wife Carol and four children, Harry will be greatly missed. His hard work, no-nonsense manner, and informed perspectives, fueled by his interest and enthusiasm in maritime matters, greatly benefited the Sociery.
Shannon}. Wall (1919-2007) Shannon J. Wall, NMHS Advisor and a former president of the National Maritime Union, died in February at the age of 87 in his home in Sequim, WA. A seaman who served on merchant ships and troop carriers during World War II in the South Pacific, Wall moved up through the union ranks and became its president in 1973. One of his greatest achievements in this role was winning the fight to have World War II merchant marin ers officially recognized as veterans by the Defense Department in 1988. Although his union had been 100,000 members strong at its peak during the war, by 1981 its membership totaled half that number. According to NMHS president emeritus Peter Stanford, Wall "came on the scene when the flight of Americanowned shipping lines to foreign flag, which meant they didn't have to employ Americans, was going full boil." In 1986, Wall was appointed to a five-member presidential Commission on Merchant Marine and Defense, which issued a number of reports regarding the nation's declining maritime industry. Mr. Wall served as president of the NMU for fifteen years and oversaw its merger with District 1 of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association in the late 1980s. A lifetime mariner, Wall enjoyed his retirement sailing his 35-foot curter in the cold waters of the Strait ofJuan de Fuca. 10
SEA HISTORY 119, SUMMER 2007