JohnMecray wi ll be presented with theNMHSDi stingui shed Service Award in recognition of using hi s considerable influence as America's preeminent artist of yachts and yachting to preserve ou r maritime heritage by working to restore the historic schooner Coronet. After studying illustration and painting at the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts), serving in the Army in Europe, and having a successful career as an illustrator, he found hi s true calling in 1972 when he accepted an invitation to crew on a 40-foot sai lboat bound for St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. In 1976, after a third passage to the Virgin Isl ands, he moved his family to Newport, Rhode Island , on the same day as the arrival of the Tall Ships '76 participants, to devote full-time to marine painting. By J 979 Mr. Mecray 's keen interest in yachts and yachting history led to the founding of The Museum ofYachting and its annual Classic Yacht Regatta . When the museum was offered the J-Class sloop, Shamrock V, he encouraged the hesitant board of directors to accept the offer. The America' s Cup chal lenger became an awesome fixture on Narragansett Bay. ln 1993 he helped found the International Yacht Restoration School , where he is a trustee . The success ofIYRS enabled the school to acquire Shamrock from the museum in J995. In 1998 it was sold to provide seed money for a project Mr. Mecray had been aiming for since 1981: the restoration of the 1885, 135-foot schooner Coronet, America' s most hi storic yacht. The restoration is under way at IYRS, headed by noted yacht restorer Dr. Robert McNeil (Cangarda) and hi s lead shipwright Jeff Rutherford , utili zing IYRS graduate students in the process. Coronet will regain her full Gi lded Age sp lendor and be fully seaworthy with on ly sails for power, for future generations to enjoy. The restoration wi ll be open to the public at IYRS and , once Coronet is restored , the historic schooner will be open for public tours while docked at various museums, teaching institutions, and maritime centers. Mr. Mecray is a member ofNMHS, Mystic Seaport Museum ' s Yachting Comm ittee, the New York Yacht Club's Fine Arts committee, the National Trust for H istoric Preservation and the HerreshoffMarine Museum, among others. Since 1997 he has donated one of his limited edition prints to each of 45 Leukemia Cup Regattas. Hi s paintings and drawings of the effects of wind, sea and light on a variety of sai lin g vessels continue to be exhibited and appreciated by sai lors and non-sailors alike.
Peter Stanford, Nationa l Maritime Historical Society President Emeritus, will receive the David A. O 'Nei l Sheet Anchor Award for his dedication, talent, vision, and know ledge of maritime history that have been significant factors in developing the Society. He also helped start many significant organ izations in the maritime field today and helped to restore numerous ships that would otherwise have been destroyed. As president ofNMHS for over three decades, Mr. Stanford estab li shed its direction as the national voice for our maritime heritage. Under his leadership, NMHS began publishing the distinguished quarterly magazine Sea History . Other NMHS publications included such works as the International Register of Historic Ships, Peking Battles Cape Horn , and Skipper and the Eagle. Under NMHS ' s auspices, Mr. Stanford founded leading national maritime institutions, including the Council of American Maritime Museums ( 1972), the American Society ofMarine Artists (1977) , the American Sh ip Trust (1978), the Hudson River Maritime Museum ( 1979) , and the National Maritime Alli ance (1987). He continues to play a leading ro le in these important institutions today . Mr. Stanford was a founder and first president of South Street Seaport in New York. He co-founded and supervised both Op Sail 1976 for the nation 's Bicentennial and the Statue of Liberty Parade of Sail in J986. Stanford is currently active in severa l maritime organizations including the World Ship Trust and the Working Harbor Committee ofNew York. A Brooklyn native and a naval veteran of World War 11, Mr. Stanford is the author of hundreds of magazine articles and a number of museum books. He earned a B.A. from Harvard and a master's degree from King 's College, Cambridge England. He is also the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the State University of New York Maritime College at Fo1t Schuyler.
RSVP Early! National Maritime Historical Society Annual Awards Dinner at the New York Yacht Club, 25 October 2007 $375 per person. $7,000 Sponsor Table for ten plus Dinner Journal page; $1,000 Dinner Journal page Call 800-221-6647, ext. 229 for reservations and infonnation . Black tie optional.
SEA HISTORY 120, AUTUMN 2007
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