NMHS: A CAUSE IN MOTION
Sails Over Ice and Seas
M
The Life and Times of the Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey by Burchenal Green, NMHS President
Alessandro Lopes and Rick Lopes filming at the shipyard. 14
photo by robert mitchell photography
courtesy voyage digital media
courtesy ernestina-morrissey
ore than three decades ago, NMHS vice chairman Rick Lopes first laid eyes on the schooner Ernestina when his uncle asked him if he could film her arrival in Newport and New Bedford, after she was gifted to the people of the United States by the government of Cabo Verde. Subsequently, he was introduced to then-NMHS president, Peter Stanford, who was instrumental in saving the vessel, along with the Friends of the Ernestina and other devotees. These initial moments were the beginnings of a remarkable quest to document the life and times of the historic Ernestina-Morrissey. Launched in 1894 as the Effie M. Morrissey, the wooden Fredonia-class schooner was one of the thousands of hardy Gloucester fishing schooners built and launched from shipyards in the hamlet of Essex, Massachusetts, in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In her long career working the North Atlantic, she fished and carried cargo out of Cape Ann, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland (1894–1925); explored the Arctic with Captain Bob Bartlett (1926–1945); was renamed Ernestina and crisscrossed the Atlantic as a Cape Verde packet, bringing immigrants and cargo to and from the United States and conducting inter-island trade (1948–1968); and advanced educational programming and sail training for people of all ages (1982–present). And in her wake, the Ernestina-Morrissey has left an indelible mark on America’s history and her future. Today she serves as a connection to our maritime, exploration, cultural, and economic past. After many years of stops and starts, and a great deal of research and filming, Sails Over Ice and Seas—The Life and Times of the Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey, the multi-part documentary series produced by the National Maritime Historical Society and our vice chair, Richardo R. Lopes, executive producer/director of Voyage Digital Media, and co-producer/cameraman/editor Alessandro Lopes, is well on its way. The series has been made possible by the generous support of several institutions and individuals, particularly Gerry and Marguerite Lenfest. When Captain Bob Bartlett took young men to the Arctic on his expeditions aboard the Morrissey in the 1940s, Gerry Lenfest was scheduled to join them on the next voyage, but the outbreak of WWII changed everybody’s plans. Mr. Lenfest nevertheless remained intimately acquainted with the ship over the years, and it is his and Mrs. Lenfest’s Ernestina-Morrissey is in the middle of a complete rebuild generosity that is enabling us to tell this story, as well as supporting the at the Shipyard at Boothbay Harbor in Maine. current restoration of the ship itself at a Maine shipyard. This documentary project far surpasses the story of an individual ship. Rather, the series serves to unfold and weave a multitude of maritime themes, reaching back to ancient voyaging, the Vikings, and the colonial empires of Europe. It examines our nation’s economic and independent development, spurred on by shipbuilding, fishing, the sea, exploration and immigration, and marine and environmental sciences. These rich connections come alive through the history of this vessel and the eras in which she sailed and flourished. We think of Ernestina–Morrissey’s story as the story of America. Rick Lopes explains, “The documentary series would not be possible without the incredible amount of support and participation of organizations, institutions, and individuals across the United States, Canada, and Cabo Verde. This schooner is truly a remarkable vessel with a compelling story, and we are traveling far and wide to interview sailors, professors, authors, shipwrights, artisans, scientists, Cape Verdeans and the like, as well as conducting re-enactments, to unfurl the life and times of the Ernestina-Morrissey.” The documentary is still a work in progress, and Rick encourages anyone who has photographs, archival film, or a personal connection to the schooner to contact either NMHS or Voyage Digital Media, and stay apprised of the ship’s restoration via the Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey Association website (www.ernestina.org; www.voyagedigitalmedia.com; www.seahistory.org)
SEA HISTORY 163, SUMMER 2018