Tag: Bemus Point Stow Ferry

The Sea Lion Saga continues

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Sea Lion Ship Barcelona, NY © Randall Burt

The Sea Lion Saga continues.

More info coming soon on the process of The Henricus Citie Militia spearheading a project to restore and transport The Sea Lion, one of the most amazing ships, from Barcelona Harbor, New York all the way to Henricus Historical Park in Chester, Virginia.

Follow us on Facebook at fb.me/henricusmilitia or Twitter @HenricusMilitia to stay updated on this amazing Sea Lion adventure!

Special Thanks to Randall Burt, Ferry Captain, Pilot/Engineer at Sea Lion Project Ltd., for giving us his blessings & and sharing some heartwarming photos. facebook.com/henricusmilitia/posts/947016605370845

 

The Rise of the Sea Lion Chapter 2

The Sea Lion Saga

Chapter 2: The Plan Takes Form

Years before the first mighty oak was harvested for the Sea Lion, Earnest Cowan, an accomplished artist and carpenter, began his research into British naval history and the construction of 16th century vessels.

Sea Lion Ship Barcelona, New York © David Brewster dcbprime

As a youngster Ernie had visited the Mayflower replica in Plymouth and admiring the beauty of the ship, as well as the workmanship it took to build it, dreamed that someday he might build a similar vessel.  “Wouldn’t it be great if it actually sailed,” he recalls saying at the time, and carried passengers like in days of old.

Ernie’s dream endured throughout the years until finally in 1971 he discovered a rare treatise drawn in 1586 by the English shipwright Mathew Baker (1530–1613). Baker was one of the most renowned Tudor shipwrights, and the first to put the practice of shipbuilding down on paper for posterity. The treatise explained Baker’s method of building a ship according to the three-arc principle in which only a compass and straight-edge were used to shape the hull. Baker developed the concept of ‘laying down the lines’ for a ship on paper instead of relying on the traditional practice of utilizing scale models.

His imagination fired by his discovery, Ernie began the long, hard fought battle of gaining support for the venture since most considered the herculean task of building a full sized 16th century ship pure folly for ordinary men to try and undertake. But then, Ernie Cowan wasn’t an ordinary man.

The marvelous photo of the Sea Lion overlooking Barcelona Harbor was provided by David Brewster dcbprime

Next Chapter 3: The tools of the Shipwright

From Fragments of Ancient English Shipwrighty, by Matthew Baker (1586)
From Fragments of Ancient English Shipwrighty, by Matthew Baker (1586)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rise of the Sea Lion Chapter 1

The Sea Lion Saga

Chapter 1: The Rise of the Sea Lion

They were bold, courageous, hardworking men venturing into an ancient forest of virgin white oak to select the material they needed to fulfill a dream they all shared.  The trees towering over them were 350 to 400 years old and one of the last stands of such timber remaining in the whole country.

Sea Lion Ship Barcelona, New York © David Brewster dcbprime

But they were exactly what their project required to provide the 10,000 board feet of virtually knot-free lumber needed to complete their “dream ship.”

Their sojourn into the dark woods was only made possible because the owner of the property shared their dream as well and contributed the valuable trees for the vessel.

After years of research they dedicated a large part of their lives to the slow, painstaking laborious work of the 16th century shipwright to complete their masterpiece. Much of this introductory chapter to the Sea Lion Saga was taken directly from an original 1981 Sea Lion Project publication. Much more to come! The marvelous photo of the Sea Lion overlooking Barcelona Harbor was provided by David Brewster dcbprime

Next, Chapter 2: The Plan Takes Form