She Floats!

Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • June 19, 2017

On Saturday, June 3, 2017, Finger Boatworks launched a Haven 12 ½ christened Hijinks .  This is the first boat that Finger Boatworks has built and the lionshare was completed by Tyler Winger.  Finger Boatworks does of course have a connection to me – its owner is my husband, Eric, a former U. S. Coast Guard officer who is also a naval architect.  Finger Boatworks (FBW) also maintains many island wooden boats and a few others as well.  Currently, FBW is building an Alerion – a boat originally designed by the “Wizard of Bristol” – Nathanael Herreshoff – in the early twentieth century.  Herreshoff designed the Alerion so that he could sail the boat himself – this in the day when they wore suit and tie, and hat of course!  By then, Herreshoff was an older gentleman who had designed many boats.

Boat building on Nantucket is now few and far between.  There are a few who have built for themselves, but very few who now build for specific clients or to sell.  Boat building did happen historically on Nantucket.   A large boatyard located in the area of Brant Point with a marine railway existed – even building a few whaleships.  Whaleboats were also built on the island.  In fact, in the early eighteenth century, they lifted the laws banning the cutting of trees on the island so that men could head out to Coatue to cut cedar for the whaleboats.  The issue with building on Nantucket was that it was too expensive and boats could be built more easily and cheaply off-island since that is where all the wood to build island boats was coming from to start!


I like to think of Maria, and her brothers and sisters, wandering around the yards, picking up shavings, smelling the fragrance of wood shavings, specifically the cedar, and listening to the rhythmic noise of the saw.  Just around the corner from them was a small boatshop – likely whaleboats – and up the street, a cooperage.  The eldest Mitchell child, Andrew, would run off to sea at a young age and found himself on a naval ship during the Civil War.  He later left the life of the sea and became a farmer – not the first time we had heard that one.  He could have been greatly influenced by the boats surrounding him and the sailors and officers of whaleships and merchant and fishing ships.  He could have also been influenced by his father with his rating of the chronometers and his work with the US Coast Survey.  The Mitchell family had many ship captains through their front sitting room.  He could have been influenced by spending his time in a boatshop.  And, he could have been further influenced by the fact that his maternal grandfather, a whaleship captain, was lost at sea when Andrew’s mother, Lydia Coleman Mitchell, was just fourteen years old.


Boat building is an ancient craft.  Whether it be small or something like a freighter, it is still a craft that we rely on for multiple purposes whether it be transportation, pleasure, livelihood, food.

Look for Hijinks in the harbor this summer.

 

JNLF

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NANTUCKET, MA— The Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association (MMA) announces Kike Calvo, award-winning photographer, journalist, and author, as its featured presenter for its July Speaker Series. Calvo’s presentation, "The Power of Creativity: A Journey Through Storytelling, Exploration, and Hope," will take place on Wednesday, July 23 at 7pm at the Nantucket Atheneum’s Great Hall. This event is free. Join the MMA for an engaging evening with award-winning photographer, journalist, and author, Kike (Kee-Keh) Calvo. A Fellow of both the Explorers Club and the Royal Geographical Society, he has traveled to over 120 countries, photographing everything from belugas in the Arctic to traditional dances in Vanuatu. His work has been featured in National Geographic Magazine, The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and more. In this engaging presentation, Calvo explores how creativity can be a catalyst for connection, storytelling, and meaningful change. From documenting remote villages to diving with great white sharks, from defying the odds as an author to inspiring thousands of children in the Amazon, Calvo shares the invaluable lessons he has learned along the way. As a National Geographic Certified Educator and Safina Center Fellow (2020-2023), Calvo combines his passion for photography with teaching, having lectured at prestigious institutions such as Yale University. A pioneer in drone photography for art and conservation, he founded the “Little Explorer, Big World” initiative, which brings education to remote communities and has donated over 35,000 bilingual books. Described by anthropologist Wade Davis as, "a fresh voice in visual anthropology," Calvo has a gift for capturing the intersections of human existence. Calvo’s new book, Luminous: A Field Guide for Visual Explorers and Storytellers, isn’t just a book—it’s an invitation to slow down, look deeper, and photograph with soul. It’s a roadmap where photography meets presence, anthropology meets art, and storytelling becomes a path to connection.  Discover how creativity can illuminate pressing global issues—such as plastic pollution—and empower each of us to make a difference. This presentation is free and open to the public, graciously hosted for the MMA by the Nantucket Atheneum in the Great Hall. No registration required. About the Maria Mitchell Association: The Maria Mitchell Association was founded in 1902 to preserve the legacy of Nantucket native astronomer, naturalist, librarian, and educator, Maria Mitchell. After she discovered a comet in 1847, Mitchell’s international fame led to many achievements and awards, including an appointment as the first professor of astronomy at Vassar College. Maria Mitchell believed in “learning by doing” and today that philosophy is reflected in the MMA’s mission statement, programs, research projects, and other activities. The Maria Mitchell Association operates two observatories, a natural science museum, an aquarium, a research center, and preserves the historic birthplace of Maria Mitchell. A wide variety of science and history-related programming is offered throughout the year for people of all ages. ###
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As we are now complete with the conservation of the historic Maria Mitchell Vestal Street Observatory (MMO), I thought it would be good to post a series of blogs concerning it history and activities, as well as some of the remarkable people who have made it what it is over the last 100 plus years. Therefore, over the next few weeks, the focus will be on the MMO. And it is now open for tours – Monday through Saturday 11-1PM. In 1906, the MMA was given Maria Mitchell’s five-inch Alvan Clark telescope which Mitchell purchased with money raised by the Women of America in 1859. With the telescope, a fireproof observatory was needed to house it and the activities surrounding its use. A campaign was developed to raise the funds for an observatory and in approximately four months, a small observatory was built at a cost of $4,800.00. Completed in 1908, the Maria Mitchell Observatory now was in need of a permanent astronomer. An Observatory Committee was developed and chaired by Annie Jump Cannon. From 1909 through 1911, the MMA was able to employ an astronomer to teach classes, observe, provide lectures, and open the observatory for public observing for approximately a month each summer. As the demand grew, the MMA realized that a more extensive program was needed and the Astronomical Fellowship Committee began to raise funds for an Astronomical Fellowship Fund. With the support of many generous donors and a matching gift from Andrew Carnegie, by 1911 the MMA had the funds it needed to support the fellowship and began its search for an astronomer who would conduct research, provide lectures and classes, and conduct open nights for the public from mid-June through mid-December. The fellow would spend the remainder four months in research and study – every fourth year a full year of study would be spent in an American or European observatory. JNLF
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