Historic Ships on a Lee Shore The 1877 Cargo Schooner Governor Stone
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by Shelley Reid, with Amanda Kilbourn
photos courtesy friends of the governor stone
he 1877 cargo freighter Governor Stone, the last known surviving example of a gaff-rigged, two-masted Gulf Coast schooner, was severely damaged by Hurricane Michael, which stormed through the Florida panhandle on 7 October. The Friends of the Governor Stone, which owns and maintains the schooner out of Historic St. Andrews in Panama City, Florida, with a mission of offering educational programming and cultural/historic tourism, are raising funds to rebuild the vessel. Built in Pascagoula, Mississippi, for Charles Greiner, and named for Greiner’s friend, Mississippi governor John Marshall Stone, Governor Stone carried lumber for Greiner’s mill and freight along the Gulf Coast, and ferried equipment and materials to ships lying offshore. In 1880 she was sold and put to work as an oyster buyboat for Patrick Burns and later for his son, Thomas. She earned extra cash during Prohibition as a rum runner, carrying Cuban whiskey to American shores, fetching $500 per run. The Stone fell victim to not one, but two previous hurricanes, sinking in 1906 and in 1939. When Burns chose not to recover her the second time, she was raised and repaired by Isaac T. Rhea and renamed Queen of the Fleet. Under her new name, she carried guests of Rhea’s Inn By The Sea on day excursions. In 1942 the schooner was leased to the US War Shipping Administration as a sail training vessel for the Merchant Governor Stone capsized during Hurricane Marine Academy in Biloxi. Over the Michael. This horrid sight was what her stewards next decade she would have four discovered at St. Andrews Marina afterwards. different owners, each of whom gave her a different name: The Pirate Queen, Sea Bob, Governor Stone in recent years. C’est La Vie, and Sovereign. Then John Curry purchased her and, through careful research, discovered her history as the Governor Stone and restored her to her original configuration. In 1991, the Governor Stone was designated a National Historic Landmark, and has called historic St. Andrews and the St. Andrews Marina home since 2009. During this time, the Friends of the Governor Stone have conducted monthly sails, teaching passengers the history of the vessel and the local area, as well as some basic ecological information, and sailing techniques. In 2013–2014 the Governor Stone was hauled out and underwent a major renovation. Since that time the schooner had been gracing St. Andrew’s Bay and the surrounding communities with her majestic beauty and knowledgeable volunteers. Hurricane Michael, however, caused extensive damage to the historic vessel. The Friends are hopeful that she can overcome this storm’s wrath as she did the previous two. Said maritime historian James Delgado, who performed the research on the schooner for her application for National Historic Landmark status: Governor Stone is a national treasure, a unique survivor of a oncecommon craft, the two-masted Gulf schooner. What makes Governor Stone important is that this schooner also has remained afloat and working, imparting a hands-on ability for successive generations to know and work and experience the schooner. As we rebuild shattered communities, and replace lost infrastructure, we must also rally to the cause of Governor Stone. Repaired and sailing again, Governor Stone can continue to inspire and connect this and future generations to the sea through our maritime past. To find out more about this historic vessel and how you can help, contact the Friends of the Governor Stone via Facebook (https://www. facebook.com/GovernorStone/) or online at www.governorstone.org. The Friends can also be reached at 850 621-0011. The group’s president, Amanda Kilbourn, can be reached directly at mandeux2@yahoo.com or at 850 933-5058. Governor Stone, sailing as Queen of the Fleet in 1950. 32
SEA HISTORY 165, WINTER 2018–19