Reunited with an old friend- ship, that is

Congrats on landing the job and thanks for taking and posting the pics. They remind me of the restoration thread on another site on the Charles W. Morgan. 

This is all interesting on several levels. 

I see some really nice work on your website. You have an interesting job!

Congrats again. This is very cool!

Oh just that when I started the thread I was at the shipyard interviewing to get hired to renovate it, and yesterday we did get hired so I was back there again.

In answer to the other question, I am an architect working for a firm that designs signs and graphics, history displays, donor walls and stuff like that. My website is

www.debranicholsdesign.com

So here we'll be generally giving them an identity at the gate, wayfinding around the yard, building identification and some amount of display stuff.

A couple more shots:

The Thayers fore boom outboard end.

The Thayers mast partner (?) on the fore mast; below decks part to the right painted white:

I would love to see what is on the end of the shrouds there; an eye for a turnbuckle? I guess I'll find out.

So I asked the Yardmaster if I could go into the spar yard there to take pictures. The Thayer is property of the NPS.

He says, "sure tell 'em you are a Congressman from Virginia investigating government waste". Luckily that wasn't necessary.

I seem to have fallen outside the loop somehow. I found the "My Afternoon at the Shipyard" thread, but I still don't know what we're congratulating GM for. But, on general principles, congratulations, GM!

Congratulations!

Bill

Laughing.

So...I'd like to hear more about what you need to do on this job. What does the commission require? Can you share that?

BTW, congrats!!!

Steve 

Any time! So obviously, I got the commission! This yard is about 100 years old. It's logo incorporates the brig Niagara, the replica was built here in 1988. They are capable of doing very nice work on a wide variety of ships. It's gonna be a version of that old joke about the tavern named "job site"....

"Honey, where've you been all day?".

IN case anyone is interested, the A.J. Fisher website is listing the Lucia Simpson as being re-released soon. I was glad to visit their store a few weeks ago. And, GM, thanks for this thread . . . I miss SF greatly!  You have brought back memories!

Bill

GM, this is cool. Thanks for sharing.

I wqas back at the shipyard this morning for a meeting. Afterwards I went over to the yard where the spars for the Thayer are being refurbished. Here are some details of the foremast.

Tobacco and sweat.

No I have never been aboard, but I reckon to get a chance to here.

I hope I land this job, it would be a dream come true.

See my other thread "Afternoon in a ship yard".

BTW nobody has ID'ed that barge. Except Stikpusher backchannel and he's an Airborne FGS! Reads his history.

Hi " G "

      Listen , Have you ever walked her decks ? I did have that honor . Many years back in fact . I was taken aback . When you walk aboard a ship such as she , I noticed an unusual scent .

 It was a scent of old wood , but a distinctly unique odor from the Crew areas .Life left it's Scent behind . She was unique and I always loved my time aboard .     T.B.

Well they'll put her back in the same hole in the water...

Yes I read she was hogged a good 16" at mid keel. Down at both ends.

I visted the museum about five years ago and the Thayer was just put in the water and was mastless.  The story was that she was hogged and decayed beyond restoration and they pretty much built a new ship.  The work looked fantastic.  Its going to be a really fine looking ship once the masts and rig is complete.  I hope to get a change to go back sometime to see her again.

EdGrune

The US Library of Congress' Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) project includes a set of drawings and photos of the Thayer

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/item/ca1506/

For Doc Tilley, the set of drawings includes a set of hull lines which he can use to scratch the hull.  Also rigging plans

 

Very nice resource. Thanks for posting that.

EJ

Back to the America, myself!

Thanks, Ed. I didn't know about that resource.

Nice ship!  This thread is encouraging me to get back to work on my Lucia Simpson, a Great Lakes three-masted schooner.  Looks a lot like the Thayer.

The US Library of Congress' Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) project includes a set of drawings and photos of the Thayer

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/item/ca1506/

For Doc Tilley, the set of drawings includes a set of hull lines which he can use to scratch the hull.  Also rigging plans

Hey, I know that place! Spent time working on sail boats there In my misspent youth.  Anyway, thanks for the posts Bill, that wood for the masts is beautiful! Are they going to send her back to SF after the refurb?

Steve

I'm glad you like it! I think the detail of the foot of the masts is really interesting.

It looks to me as though she was painted with anti-fouling paint. She was after all a lowly coastal lumber schooner.

I should remember, on a dare I dove under her and came up on the other side.

Wow that is so cool!I do not see any copper on her bottom so what protected the ship from the Toredo that used to cause the bottom to fall out of wooden ships back in the day?