More on Shallop

Posted By: WAYNE, '79 5.2, OCALA, FL
Date: 8/15/07 3:41p.m.

Report: outside forum guidelines

In Response To: Shallop Crew (Stuart in Virginia)

Press Releases | Search DNR | DNR Home Governor Ehrlich Unveils Captain John Smith Shallop Replica at Maryland State House Thirty-foot boat will retrace Captain’s historic 1608 exploration of the Chesapeake Bay -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr., joined by National Park Service Director Fran Mainella and the Chairman of the National Geographic Society Gilbert Grosvenor, today unveiled the recently completed replica of the 30-foot shallop used by Captain John Smith to make his historic 1608 exploration of the Chesapeake Bay. The shallop will be exhibited on the first floor in the Maryland State House and then in museums throughout the United States and England in 2006 before setting out to retrace the route of Captain John Smith’s expeditions in the summer of 2007. The Governor also presented Director Mainella with a check for $25,000 to help fund a feasibility study on the development of the proposed Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Water Trail that will mark routes explored by Smith and 14 English colonists who set out on a journey in 1608 to explore and map the Chesapeake Bay. The proposed Trail will unite more than 1,500 miles of waterways into a single, comprehensive network of trails equivalent in scope to the Appalachian Trail. The many visitors who are expected to go on the water trail can look forward to breathtaking land and waterscapes and experience incomparable opportunities for recreation, wildlife viewing and cultural and historic learning. “We are pleased today to unveil this replica of the Captain John Smith shallop, which commemorates the 400th anniversary of this historic journey and honors one of America’s greatest explorers,” said Governor Ehrlich. “This shallop, along with the proposed National Historic Water Trail, will preserve an important part of Maryland’s history not only for today, but for generations to come.” The replica of Captain John Smith’s shallop was recently constructed and completed in Chestertown, Maryland by shipwrights who relied exclusively upon 17th century tools and construction techniques. The construction of the replica is part of the Captain John Smith Four Hundred Project, a multi-year educational effort to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Smith’s incredible 1,500-mile Chesapeake voyage. From January 2006 through April 2007 the shallop will travel as the centerpiece of an educational exhibit to museums around the Chesapeake Region, including the Maryland Science Center, The Science Museum of Virginia, the National Maritime Center in Norfolk, the National Geographic Museum at Explorers Hall, the Mariners’ Museum, the Calvert Marine Museum and the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. On May 12, 2007, the 400th anniversary of the establishment of the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia, the shallop and a crew of 14 modern-day explorers will embark on a 127-day, 1,500-mile reenactment of Smith’s original expedition. Propelled by oar and sail alone, the shallop and her crew will visit communities around the Chesapeake while their progress is followed by students throughout the region through an innovative website and planned video documentary. The Captain John Smith Four-Hundred Project is an undertaking of Sultana Projects, Inc., a non-profit educational organization based in Chestertown, Maryland, best known for providing educational programs on board its reproduction of the 1768 schooner Sultana. The Captain John Smith Four Hundred Project is being developed as a signature product for the Friends of the Chesapeake National Water Trail, a group whose founders include Gilbert Grosvenor, Chairman of the National Geographic Society, William Baker, President of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Patrick Noonan, Chairman Emeritus of The Conservation Fund. The mission of the Friends of the Chesapeake National Water Trail is to celebrate the unique history and environment of the Chesapeake Bay by creating a lasting legacy for future generations through the establishment of America’s first National Water Trail. Legislation authorizing a feasibility study of the proposed trail by the National Park Service was approved by Congress on July 26 and signed by President Bush on August 2. For more information on Maryland's Water Trails, visit /greenways/watertrails.html For more information on the Captain John Smith Project, visit http://www.johnsmith400.org/