 Effie M. Morrissey in 1894 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Effie M. Morrissey |
| Builder | John F. James & Washington Tarr,Essex,Massachusetts |
| Launched | 1 February 1894 |
| Renamed | Ernestina |
| Status | Training vessel |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Two-mastedGaff riggedschooner |
| Tonnage | 120 GRT |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 24 ft 5 in (7.4 m) |
| Draft | 13 ft (4.0 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails and diesel engine |
| Sail plan | 8,000 sq ft (740 m2) |
Ernestina (schooner) | |
   | |
| Location | Steamship Wharf,New Bedford, Massachusetts |
| Coordinates | 41°38′2.42″N70°55′14.22″W / 41.6340056°N 70.9206167°W /41.6340056; -70.9206167 |
| Built | 1894 |
| Architect | George Melville McClain; James & Tarr Shipyards |
| NRHP reference No. | 85000022 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | January 3, 1985[1] |
| Designated NHL | December 14, 1990[2] |
Effie M. Morrissey (nowErnestina-Morrissey) is a historicschooner on permanent display inNew Bedford, Massachusetts. Originally a "high liner" fishing theGrand Banks of Newfoundland out ofGloucester, Massachusetts, she made many scientific expeditions to theArctic, sponsored by American museums, theExplorers Club and theNational Geographic Society; she also helped survey the Arctic for the United States Government duringWorld War II. She then went on to a final career as apacket ship, before undergoing a complete restoration in 1982.
She is currently designated by theUnited States Department of the Interior as aNational Historic Landmark as part of theNew Bedford Whaling National Historical Park. She is the State Ship ofMassachusetts.
Designed by George McClain ofGloucester, Massachusetts to withstandNorth Atlantic gales,Effie M. Morrissey was the last fishing schooner built for the Wonson Fish Company. Laid down withwhite oak andyellow pine at the John F. James & Washington Tarr shipyard inEssex, Massachusetts, she took four months to build and was launched 1 February 1894. Her hull was painted black and her first skipper was William Edward Morrissey, who named her after his daughter Effie.
Effie M. Morrissey fished out of Gloucester for eleven years. Considered a high liner, she brought in enough fish - over 200,000 pounds (91,000 kg) - on her first voyage to pay for her construction. One ofEffie M. Morrissey's more notable skippers was Clayton Morrissey, who went on to skipper the racing schoonerHenry Ford. A statue to Morrissey by sculptor Leonard Craske named theGloucester Fisherman's Memorial can be seen on Gloucester's Western Avenue.
In 1905 under a new owner, Captain Ansel Snow,Effie M. Morrissey began fishing out ofDigby,Nova Scotia. In 1912, the Montreal journalist and photographerFrederick William Wallace sailed on the vessel as a member of Snow's crew.[3] His epic poem about his time aboardEffie M. Morrissey, "The Log of the Record Run," was widely read and adopted by east coast fishermen with such authentic results that the folkloristHelen Creighton mistakenly believed it to be a very old traditional song.[4]
In 1914 ownership moved toBrigus,Newfoundland, where Harold Bartlett used her as a fishing and coasting vessel along theNewfoundland and Labrador shoreline.
In 1925 Harold Bartlett sold her to his cousin, noted Arctic explorerCapt. Bob Bartlett, who installed an auxiliary engine and reinforced the hull so the vessel could be used in Arctic ice. In 1926 with the financial support of the well known publisherGeorge Palmer Putnam, Bartlett embarked on two decades of Arctic exploration using this vessel.
Notable voyages captained by Robert Bartlett aboardEffie M. Morrissey include:
When CaptainRobert Bartlett died on April 28, 1946,Effie M. Morrissey was sold to the Jackson brothers to carry mail and passengers in an inter-island trade in theSouth Pacific. On their voyage to the Pacific she developed problems at sea, forcing the crew to return toNew York City. On December 2, 1947, the boat caught fire of undetermined origin while docked at the Boat Basin inFlushing, New York.
The schooner was repaired and sold toLouisa Mendes ofEgypt, Massachusetts. She entered thepacket trade in a trans-Atlantic crossing toCape Verde with a cargo of food and clothing. Upon reaching the islands, Captain Henrique Mendes reregistered the schooner under the nameErnestina, after his own daughter, and used her in inter-island trade.Ernestina made many transatlantic voyages and fell into disrepair at Cape Verde, where she remained until the late nineteen sixties when interest arose in the United States to save the historic vessel.Harry Dugan and theBartlett Exploration Association of Philadelphia made several offers to buy the ship for theSouth Street Seaport Museum in New York. In 1977 the people of Cape Verde agreed to giveErnestina to the people of the United States. The Foreign Minister, speaking on behalf of PresidentAristides Pereira said:
The Government of Cape Verde offers theErnestina as a gift to the United States of America as an expression of the high regard of the people of Cape Verde for the people of the United States and we deliver the vessel to the State of Massachusetts as a representative of the people of the United States.
In August 1982 her hull was completely rebuilt in Cape Verde and she sailed to the United States with a Cape Verdean and American crew.
In August 1988 the schooner made a return trip toBrigus, Newfoundland, home of Capt. Bob Bartlett on the 113th anniversary of his birth.Ernestina was designated by theUnited States Department of the Interior as aNational Historic Landmark in 1990,[2][6] with restoration being completed in 1994, and in 1996 became a part of theNew Bedford Whaling National Historical Park. She is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Built in 1894, the schooner ERNESTINA is the oldest surviving Grand Banks fishing schooner; the only surviving 19th century Gloucester-built fishing schooner; one of two remaining examples of the Fredonia-style schooners (the other beingLETTIE G. HOWARD, also a National Historic Landmark), the most famous American fishing vessel type; the only offshore example of that type; and one of two sailing Arctic exploration vessels left afloat in the United States (the other beingBOWDOIN, also a National Historic Landmark). Today, ERNESTINA regularly sails the New England coast on educational cruises.[2]
— NHL designation
In 2014, the ship was given the green light by the Massachusetts Department of Recreation and Conservation to undergo a$6 million multi-year restoration project at the Boothbay Harbor Shipyard inBoothbay Harbor, Maine.After months of waiting for the weather to cooperate, the ship was finally able to reach Boothbay Harbor in April, 2015, and washauled-out later that month.
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