S.S.S.Lotus | |
 Lotus at mooring inSodus Bay, July 2007 | |
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| Location | Katlynn Marine, Inc., 7448 State Route 14,Sodus Point, New York |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43°15′59″N76°59′29″W / 43.26639°N 76.99139°W /43.26639; -76.99139 |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1916 |
| Architect | Hand, William H., Jr.; Zickes, Ted |
| Architectural style | Auxiliary Schooner |
| NRHP reference No. | 90000694[1] |
| Added to NRHP | May 10, 1990 |
TheS.S.S. (Sea Scout Ship)Lotus is a historicgaff riggedschooner. Her home port isSodus Bay inWayne County, New York, United States. She is owned and operated by the "Friends of the Schooner Lotus."
The keel onLotus was laid down in 1917 and the boat was completed in 1918, inRocky River, Ohio. Designed by thenaval architectWilliam Hand Jr. in 1916, and christened with the name ofMiss Gloucester, she was designed as a pleasureyacht for sailing on theGreat Lakes.
AsMiss Gloucester, she was commissioned by Thomas B. Van Dorn, to be the Van Dorn family yacht. The Van Dorn family sailed her onLake Erie and perhapsLake Huron.
In 1922, the ship was sold to Stephen Estes Comstock ofNewark, New York. He moved the ship toSodus Bay, onLake Ontario, and renamed herLotus, after the wildwater lilies that grew in the bay.
Lotus was sold again in 1938, to Dick Todd and Ken Cooley. They renamed her again, this time toDickens, a combination of their first names.
In 1943, Ezra Hale and his partners bought the ship and changed her name back toLotus. Ezra Hale and John Trahey donatedLotus to theOtetiana Council of theBoy Scouts of America in 1971, specifying that Sea Explorer Ship (now Sea Scout Ship) 303, chartered by the Kiwanis Club of Webster, New York, be the ones to use it. The Sea Explorer Ship 303 had begun in 1965, and used a variety of power cruisers before the Lotus was donated.
Unfortunately, it was difficult to keep up with the required maintenance and by 1991Lotus needed serious restoration. With the support of the Kiwanis Club, the money was raised for a restoration, soliciting donations from individuals and corporations. A matching funds grant was also received fromNew York State, which brought the total amount of money raised to $150,000.
Lotus was trucked to Rivendell Marine, inRhode Island, in 1991. The refit was completed in 1993. For the following 14 years,Lotus was sailed by members of Sea Scout Ship 303 around all ofLake Ontario.Lotus visited many harbor festivals and reenactments each year includingAlexandria Bay Pirate Week,Oswego Harborfest, and reenactments inSackets Harbor.Lotus has also participated several times inOperation Sail. In 2009Otetiana Council, BSA andFinger Lakes Council, BSA merged to formSeneca Waterways Council, BSA with operations centered inRochester, New York.
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By the end of the 2017 season,Lotus was in serious need of repair. Declining membership in Sea Scout Ship 303 resulted in the unit becoming dormant and the end of its 50-year charter relationship with the Kiwanis Club of Webster. Later that year, the unit was re-invigorated by a group of sailors and re-chartered under the Newport Yacht Club inIrondequoit, New York, with the understanding that theSeneca Waterways Council would make arrangements for the care ofLotus. Sea Scout Ship 303 and several caring volunteers made attempts to protect her from the elements over the next few years, but with little success. She was in a state of abandonment and deteriorated rapidly.
In 2019 the Seneca Waterways Council Scouting Historical Society began assembling aLotus and Sea Scout Ship 303 archive. The efforts culminated in a large exhibit at the council office that opened in February 2020. By that time "The Friends of the Schooner Lotus," organized inSodus Point, New York at the end of 2019, had begun meeting monthly. A Facebook group was created and efforts were begun to obtain ownership of Lotus. A marine survey determined that the value of the schooner was far less than the financial obligation required to store her. By that summer, several setbacks brought on by theCOVID-19 pandemic, legal and financial concerns, differences of opinions on restoration methods and other issues involving the owners made it seem like there was no hope of savingLotus and that she would likely be scrapped by the end of the year.
On December 14, 2020, an agreement was reached and ownership was transferred to "The Friends of the Schooner Lotus". With determined efforts of the new owners over the following several days including help from Katlynn Marine,Lotus was prepared for transport. On December 21, 2020, she was trucked to Beacon Bay Marina and Cayuga Wooden Boat Works. Efforts are now underway to raise the funds necessary to begin the lengthy restoration ofLotus.
Memories of the Schooner Lotus"Loafing on Lotus," by C.P.H. Vary, June 1924 issue of "Yachting"
