Maine Windjammer Association honored by Mystic Seaport Museum
This fall the Maine Windjammer Association (MWA) was awarded the prestigious William Avery Baker Award from Mystic Seaport Museum, an honor that shines a spotlight on the enduring legacy of these historic schooners and the people who keep them sailing.
Established in 1989, the Baker Award was created to “promote awareness and appreciation of fine examples of one-design classes or boats of a like kind, to foster faithful preservation and restoration, and encourage their continued use.”
The award is named for William Avery “Bill” Baker, a naval architect, maritime historian, and the designer of replicas of historic vessels, including the famed Mayflower II. His work and scholarship set a standard for authenticity and preservation that continues to inspire today. According to Mystic Seaport Museum, “The William Avery Baker Award is somewhat unique in that it is customarily presented to a class association or group of owners. The purpose is to recognize the people and communities that do the bold, arduous, and often expensive work of keeping a large group or class of vessels actively sailing.” In this vein, the award acknowledges not just the schooners themselves but the collaborative spirit that has sustained them for decades.
The presentation took place during the Camden Windjammer Festival, where Chris Freeman, interim president of Mystic Seaport Museum, traveled to Maine to recognize the Association and its members. “If ever there was an example of a community coming together to achieve something remarkable, it is the community that is the Maine Windjammer Association—the captains, crews, and home-port communities,” said Freeman. “At Mystic Seaport Museum, we know what is required to keep vessels such as these alive and in active service. Everyone involved in keeping this fleet sailing should be commended for their courage, fortitude, skill, wisdom, good humor, and relentless optimism.”
The Maine Windjammer Association represents the largest fleet of working traditional sailing vessels in North America. These vessels, some more than a century and a half old, are painstakingly maintained and still earning their keep. Previous distinguished recipients, include the Chesapeake Bay Log Canoes, the Dark Harbor 20 Class, and the S-Class vessels, among others. We are honored to be in such good company.
We encourage you to plan a visit to Mystic Seaport Museum in Connecticut in the future. Visitors can step aboard historic vessels like the Charles W. Morgan, the world’s last wooden whaleship, explore recreated 19th-century seaport buildings, and watch traditional shipwrights at work. And visitors don’t just have to watch, the Museum also offers SeaClass, lessons in maritime skills such as canvas work, woodcarving, and blacksmithing. Be sure to add it to your “To Do” List!
Categories: Maine Windjammers, Sailing Events
