Maine's First Ship Launch { 32 images } Created 8 Jun 2022
This reconstruction of the 1607 pinnace Virginia is 51 feet long and weighed in at 71,300 pounds when it was placed in the water June 4, 2022. The original was the first English built ship in the Americas. Constructed 1607-1608 at Popham Colony, Fort St. George just ten miles down river at the mouth of the Kennebec.
DSC 9079 the shallop Jane Stevens can be seen lower left.
123703 17th century ships used a pulley system to hoist heavy spars. The part fixed on the deck is known as a knight, and is traditionally caved with a head.This head is of Rob Stevens, Virginia's lead shipwright.
OFFICIAL LAUNCH DAY PRESS RELEASE
June 4, 2022
Contact: Kirstie Truluck or Kimberly Madden
Phone: 207-443-4242
A HISTORIC LAUNCH 25 YEARS IN THE MAKING
On June 4, Maine’s First Ship launched their reconstruction of the very first English-built ship in the Americas, after 25 years of research, planning, and building. The traditional wooden sailing vessel Virginia, a reconstruction of the 51-foot, 17th-century pinnace built by English colonists at the mouth of the Kennebec River in 1607, weighed in at 71,300 pounds (without rigging) and launched from the Bath Freight Shed at 27 Commercial Street in Bath, ME.
Maine’s First Ship commemorated the historic event with a celebration that spanned much of Commercial Street in Bath, including Waterfront Park, with live music, historic reenactors, local food vendors, regional artists’ pop-up, and special guests including John Bear Mitchell, UMaine Wabanaki Lecturer. We respectfully acknowledge that we are in the homeland of the Wabanaki, the People of the Dawn. While we cannot make history, we can learn from it and move forward with knowledge and respect.
Virginia touched the waters of the Kennebec moments before 4:30 p.m. Saturday, June 4, and then tied up at her dock at Bath Freight Shed where the process of rigging and other finishing touches will continue.
Bath Freight Shed, located along the Kennebec River, has been home to a passionate group of volunteers, mostly amateur boat builders, since 2007. These volunteers are the heart and pulse of the organization. They bring skills as educators, storytellers, naval seamen, carpenters, sailors, shipwrights, and artists to a project paying homage to the history surrounding the birth of Maine’s 400-year-old shipbuilding heritage and the Popham Colony, just 10-miles up the river from where it all started.
Maine’s First Ship engages the public in an exploration of the region’s early history, craftsmanship, and relationships through the reconstruction of the 1607 pinnace Virginia, the first English ocean-going vessel built in the Americas. Maine’s First Ship hosts a visitor center, shipbuilding workshops, and educational programs at the Bath Freight Shed. New programs are being added all the time.
Come discover what Executive Director Kirstie Truluck calls, “Bath’s best kept secret.” More information about Maine’s First Ship is available at https://mfship.org/
DSC 9079 the shallop Jane Stevens can be seen lower left.
123703 17th century ships used a pulley system to hoist heavy spars. The part fixed on the deck is known as a knight, and is traditionally caved with a head.This head is of Rob Stevens, Virginia's lead shipwright.
OFFICIAL LAUNCH DAY PRESS RELEASE
June 4, 2022
Contact: Kirstie Truluck or Kimberly Madden
Phone: 207-443-4242
A HISTORIC LAUNCH 25 YEARS IN THE MAKING
On June 4, Maine’s First Ship launched their reconstruction of the very first English-built ship in the Americas, after 25 years of research, planning, and building. The traditional wooden sailing vessel Virginia, a reconstruction of the 51-foot, 17th-century pinnace built by English colonists at the mouth of the Kennebec River in 1607, weighed in at 71,300 pounds (without rigging) and launched from the Bath Freight Shed at 27 Commercial Street in Bath, ME.
Maine’s First Ship commemorated the historic event with a celebration that spanned much of Commercial Street in Bath, including Waterfront Park, with live music, historic reenactors, local food vendors, regional artists’ pop-up, and special guests including John Bear Mitchell, UMaine Wabanaki Lecturer. We respectfully acknowledge that we are in the homeland of the Wabanaki, the People of the Dawn. While we cannot make history, we can learn from it and move forward with knowledge and respect.
Virginia touched the waters of the Kennebec moments before 4:30 p.m. Saturday, June 4, and then tied up at her dock at Bath Freight Shed where the process of rigging and other finishing touches will continue.
Bath Freight Shed, located along the Kennebec River, has been home to a passionate group of volunteers, mostly amateur boat builders, since 2007. These volunteers are the heart and pulse of the organization. They bring skills as educators, storytellers, naval seamen, carpenters, sailors, shipwrights, and artists to a project paying homage to the history surrounding the birth of Maine’s 400-year-old shipbuilding heritage and the Popham Colony, just 10-miles up the river from where it all started.
Maine’s First Ship engages the public in an exploration of the region’s early history, craftsmanship, and relationships through the reconstruction of the 1607 pinnace Virginia, the first English ocean-going vessel built in the Americas. Maine’s First Ship hosts a visitor center, shipbuilding workshops, and educational programs at the Bath Freight Shed. New programs are being added all the time.
Come discover what Executive Director Kirstie Truluck calls, “Bath’s best kept secret.” More information about Maine’s First Ship is available at https://mfship.org/
