Introduction | Bay History | Hooper Strait Lighthouse | Oystering on the Chesapeake | Floating Fleet Steamboats on the Bay | Waterfowling | Small Boat Collection | Waterman's Wharf Floating Fleet of Chesapeake Bay Boats Over the centuries Chesapeake boat builders have designed a great variety of watercraft to meet a particular geography and task. The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is home to the largest collection of Chesapeake Bay boats in existence. The queen of the fleet is Edna E. Lockwood, a National Historic Landmark, and the last sailing log-bottom bugeye. Just as Native American dugout canoes were formed by carving out one log, a bugeye's hull is constructed by pinning together a series of logs and hollowing them out as a unit. This design proved to be an economical way to build larger boats when mill-hewn lumber was scarce in the communities around the Bay. Another example of log-canoe construction that you will find is the swift and graceful Chesapeake Bay racing log canoe. With its long masts and large sails, the only way to keep these boats upright as they accelerate to speeds of 15 miles or more is for crew members to climb to the ends of 15-foot boards placed perpendicular to the boat itself. The fleet continues its racing tradition on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the summer, including the log canoe Edmee S., which is in the Museum's collection and crewed by Museum staff and volunteers. The skipjack, Maryland's state boat, is well represented at the Museum by Rosie Parks. Appearing on the Bay in the late 1800s, skipjacks evolved from the smaller V-bottom Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff. As large trees became harder to find, V-bottom boats began to appear on the Bay since they were easier to build and did not require a professional boat builder. Designed specifically for dredging up the vast quantities of oysters found on the Bay's floor, only a handful of skipjacks continue to work the Bay. They are the only commercial sailing fleet left in the United States and in 2002 were designated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of America's Eleven Most Endangered Places. While crabbing is typically considered a summer time activity on the Chesapeake, many watermen continue to dredge for crabs throughout the winter. Old Point, constructed of seven logs in 1909, is an example of such a dredge boat. In addition to serving as a dredge boat, Old Point hauled freight fish in the summer and carried oysters during the fall. Known as a Hooper Island draketail because of her unique stern design, Martha was built by Bronza Parks in 1934 and was primarily used for crabbing and oystering, not to mention, pleasure. Unlike other boats of her day which featured the more standard box or round sterns, Martha's stern resembles a drake or dove's tail. It is believed this elegant design was an attempt by boat builders to overcome problems created by the new conversion to mechanical propulsion. She was completely restored from stem to stern by the Museum's Boat Yard staff. The tugboat Delaware is a product of Bethel's great age of wooden boatbuilding at the beginning of the 19th century, and apart from the 1900 ram schooner Victory Chimes, may be the only survivor of that notable yard. Built in 1912 by William H. Smith, the tug hauled scows often laden with lumber, and towed ram schooners through the C&D Canal. She is a rare example of a typical early 20th century wooden river tug. HOME | ABOUT US | WHAT TO SEE & DO | VISITOR INFO | EDUCATION & OUTREACH MEMBERS & SUPPORTERS| NEWS & MEDIA | Copyright 2003, The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
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