 Lettie G. Howard sailing in New York Harbor | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Lettie G. Howard |
| Namesake | Lettie G. Howard Barron |
| Owner | South Street Seaport Museum |
| Operator | South Street Seaport Museum Erie |
| Route | Northeast United States,Great Lakes |
| Builder | A.D. Story Yard,Essex, Massachusetts |
| Launched | 1893 |
| Acquired | 1968 |
| Refit | 1993 |
| Home port | New York City, New York |
| Identification |
|
| Status | Sea-goingmuseum ship |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | two-mastedgaffschooner |
| Displacement | 102 short tons (93 t) |
| Length | 125.4 ft (38.2 m) overall |
| Beam | 21.1 ft (6.4 m) |
| Draft | 10.6 ft (3.2 m) |
| Depth of hold | 8.4 ft (2.6 m) |
| Sail plan | mainsail, maintopsail,foresail,staysail,jib; 5,072 square feet (471.2 m2) |
| Crew | 17 POB for exposed waters, 36 POB for day sails, 20 POB overnight (Captain, Lic Mate crew varies: bosun, engineer, cook deckhand up to 7 paid crew) |
Lettie G. Howard (schooner) | |
.jpg) Lettie G. Howard in 1989 prior to restoration | |
| Location | South Street Seaport,New York City, New York |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1893 (1893) |
| Architect | Arthur D. Story |
| Architectural style | Fredonia schooner |
| NRHP reference No. | 84002779[1] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | 7 September 1984[1] |
| Designated NHL | 11 April 1989[2] |
Lettie G. Howard, formerlyMystic C andCaviare, is a wooden Fredoniaschooner built in 1893 inEssex, Massachusetts.[3] This type of craft was commonly used by American offshore fishermen, and is the older of two surviving examples of its type.[4] She was declared aNational Historic Landmark in 1989.[2][5][6] She is now based at theSouth Street Seaport Museum inNew York City.
Lettie G. Howard is a two-masted wooden-hulled fishingschooner. She is 74.6 feet (22.7 m) long, with a beam of 21 feet (6.4 m) and a hold depth of 8.4 feet (2.6 m). She has a gross tonnage of 59.74 and a net tonnage of 56.76. Her hull has a frame of oak timbers, covered intreenailed pine planking. The belowdecks area was historically divided into a forecastle third where the crew quarters were located, the main fish hold in the center, and a smaller storage area aft.[7]
The schooner was built in 1893 at a shipyard inEssex, Massachusetts, by noted shipbuilder Arthur D. Story, one of four co-owners. She operated on the Georges Banks until 1901, when she ran aground on a shoal nearGurnet Point, Massachusetts. In 1902, she was sold to E.E. Saunders ofPensacola, Florida, who used her to fish forred snapper off the coast of theYucatan Peninsula. She was taken out of service in 1922, and rebuilt in 1923, given the nameMystic C. In 1966, she was sold to Historic Ship Associates ofGloucester, Massachusetts, which converted her into amuseum ship, mistakenly namedCaviare after an 1891 ship of that name.[7] That museum failed, and in 1968 she was sold to theSouth Street Seaport Museum and refinished. She was restored in 1991 and is currently certified by theU.S. Coast Guard as a Sailing School Vessel training and working museum ship. She currently sails along the Northeast seaboard. She underwent extensive shipyard repairs inPortland, Maine, in the second half of 2013.[8]
In 2014, the schooner received two awards relating to her programming and historic restoration efforts; theTall Ships America 2014 Sail Training Vessel of the Year Award,[9] and theNew York Landmarks Conservancy Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award.[10]
In 2015, the vessel and crew took third place in the Gloucester Schooner Festival'sEsperanto Cup. Part of the crew was made up of High school students, from the New York Harbor School, and the MAST Academy.[11]
In 2018, the schooner sailed toLake Erie and is currently hosted[as of?] by the Flagship Niagara League, offering sailing tours from Dobbins Landing inErie, Pennsylvania.[12][13]
