BOAT BUILDING

Bermuda was known for its sloops from the earliest days. This was in part due to the superiority of the local red cedar for hulls, but also to their hull design and rig. Being fast sailers, Bermuda-built vessels were preferred by traders, privateers and pirates. By the end of the 18th century, the Royal Navy was a regular purchaser of sloops and schooners of various sizes for uses ranging from small cruisers to advice boats. Such was their reputation that the famous Swedish naval architect Chapman included the lines and rigging details of such a sloop in his "Architectura Navalis Mercatoria", published in 1763.

The "Grandma" (E.S.)

Shipbuilding declined in Bermuda during the first half of the 19th century, partly because of the improvement in American schooner design, but more probably as a direct result of the shortage of cedar from excessive cutting. The LeMarchant prints in the Main Exhibition Hall show the denuded hills very strikingly.

A St. David’s Island dinghy as found. (E.S.)

There was always enough cedar to build small sloops for use in local waters. These had similar lines to the ocean-going traders, but carried a leg-of-mutton mainsail, instead of being gaff-rigged. As these boats outperformed their contemporaries, they formed the nucleus of early competitive racing in Bermuda. Some were taken to England and America by their owners and in time their sail design was developed into the "Bermuda Rig."

With the development of internal combustion engines for marine craft early in this century, the use of sail on Bermudian work-boats was gradually phased out. Sloops which had served as fishing or freight boats for 50-100 years were either converted to power or abandoned. A few, such as the Osprey, Princeton and Boswich, are still in service as fishing or work boats, and one, the Shamrock, was rebuilt on Darrell’s Island, in 1970, by Mr. Ted Quigley, a former Royal Navy shipwright, and may be seen sailing in the Great Sound on occasion.

Recognising that Bermuda is on the verge of losing part of its maritime heritage, the Museum is attempting to build up a representative collection of small Bermuda-built boats. Volunteers of the Association have been seeking old, and in many cases discarded, hulls for salvaging and possible restoration. The availability of manpower and funds will determine whether a decaying hull can be restored to seaworthy condition, preserved as an exhibit with minimal repairs, or have its lines and available history recorded.

With regard to restoration, a workshop has been set up on the ground floor of the Boat Loft, where repairs or reconstruction can be carried out. It is hoped that local residents interested in learning more about both Bermuda boat-building in past generations and the methods used in those earlier days will take the opportunity to join the restoration group and participate in this ongoing project. The Association considers this a very important project for Bermudians. In view of the proliferation of imported stock boats and the limited number of wooden boats being built in local commercial boatyards, the interested amateur boat builder of the future or student of the past will be able to use the museum boat collection and ancillary information as the only source of traditional Bermuda boat designs.

Recognising the educational potential of this workshop, instruction is being offered in both restoration and traditional boat-building methods, using salvaged boats as workpieces. It is hoped to attract a wide spectrum of local residents to this endeavour by providing both evening and summer courses.

New frame being placed in the dinghy "Sea Lion". (L. Webb)

Boatwright at work in Boat Restoration Workshop. (L. Webb)

Partial reconstruction of the dinghy "Sea Lion." (L. Webb)