The Epic Voyage of the Restoration Of the Oyster Sloop Christeen

On February 15, you can also listen to Josh Herman, a professional shipwright who has worked on a number of historic wooden boats including the Christeen, talk about the venture. You will get your wooden-boat building fix, with questions answered, and real-time updates on repairs to the Christeen. The event is part of the series of talks sponsored by The WaterFront Center held at the home of Mrs. Storrs, at 6 Cove Neck Road, Oyster Bay, at 7:30 p.m.

The presentation includes light snacks and drinks, shared with friends and fellow enthusiasts at their series of boating lectures. The suggested Donation is $10 per presentation, payable at the door. Please call 922-7245 or email the WFC to confirm your attendance at any or all of these events. You can also email them at info@thewfc.org.

Where’s the Keel?

Putting the ship together has included finding just the right  materials. In his Wednesday, Jan. 5 Internet message, Mr. Waldo talked about the search for a keel. Mr. Waldo wrote: “The search for a keel has turned out to be much like one of the Great Waldo Searches. One moment you think you’ve found him and then you realize you have found some impostor posing as Waldo just to trick you!

“Our search began in August for a piece of White Oak or Long Leaf Yellow Pine measuring 12”x15”x35’. We had reliable sources lined up and essentially thought it was a matter of time before our log arrived and it was milled to our specifications. As the months passed, our project progressed, and time grew short; we had a feeling our log was never going to arrive and a new search was needed.

“Now some of us may think we have a tree in our backyard that is huge, a hidden beast on our property waiting to be plucked by some lucky shipwright or home builder. I assure you this is not the case. To produce a piece of timber that size in one singular piece we are talking about a massive tree, think Redwood Forest big (well maybe not that big). The tree in question would need to be at least 60 feet to the first branch, yes the first branch, and clear as a night sky in the dead of winter somewhere in Canada. To add to the fun and ‘wow’ factor the tree’s diameter at the first branch (60 feet above the ground) would need to measure 18”. Maybe you are thinking to yourself this is no problem, my friend who knows this guy who was roommates with someone in college has a relative with a tree you can come on over and chop it down any time! But what if we were to tell you this tree needs to be straight, like a Christmas tree only about 100 times larger?

“So our search has led us near and far, we have spoken with many people in the industry who led us to sources like: I know this guy who is taking down an old barn, in this barn, in the basement, there are these timbers you can use – I hear they’re great! Or, someone has miraculously come across multiple pieces of timber this size, but in order to get one we need to buy five. You get the idea, this is stuff stories are made of, published ones. 

“The search continues…,” he ended the blog.

On Tuesday, Jan. 11, as the storm was looming, Mr. Waldo said they believed they have found the tree and it was expected to be delivered shortly.

The New Mast

The week before the column was about Christeen’s New Mast. Mr. Waldo wrote: “Christeen’s new mast, being turned at Historical Seaport’s spar shop is about ready to be shipped over from the great state of Washington to the Western Waterfront. Historical Seaport did a rough turn for us getting the mast down to the approximate dimensions.

“The shipwrights and volunteers will then shape the mast as needed as to recreate an identical, historically accurate replica of the existing mast. The mast should arrive by early January along with the new keel. Preparations for both are moving along nicely, but there is much work still to be done!”

Voilá – it arrived on Tuesday, Jan. 11.

For reader’s information he added a video of a similar mast being turned for a replica of one of Columbus’ ships, the Nina, which gives a good view of the size of the mast and the work involved.

Mr. Waldo has been writing about the project for some time. In December he described the work of removing the planks, to reveal the keel – it was the deterioration of the keel that has necessitated the restoration work presently being done.

Planks Off

In his column, Christeen Oyster Sloop: Planks Off!, he wrote, “All planks necessary for the keel repair both outboard and inboard were removed from her frames. All but one plank was removed completely intact and undamaged. The planks, which were removed, are getting treated and prepped so they are ready to get refastened to the boat once the keel repair is finished.” He credited the ease of the work to the volunteers and how well the boat was constructed during her restoration in 1998. He said, “Even the wedges used to hold the frames in place where they were mortised into the keel were easy to remove – a huge relief.”

 They were ahead of schedule and work on the centerboard had begun under supervision of the shipwrights.  “During the past week it has been completely stripped down to new metal, cleaned and repaired.  We will begin to cut wood to sandwich the metal board in the middle to give it greater torsion strength and rigidity.  Once the wood has been fitted fiberglass and epoxy will wrap the entire piece to make it waterpoof and strong.” The work began in October.

Raising Funds

In all good conscience the fact that the work still needs funding should be mentioned. The Christeen has taken about 17,000 people out on the Bay since the Spring of 2002, when she was given to  the Waterfront Center (WFC) by the Christeen Oyster Sloop Preservation Corp. She has left the dock for about 1,200 sails during these eight years. In spite of being well maintained by the WFC during the winter of 2009, rot was found in her original 1883 keel around the centerboard trunk.

With the work preceding along well in Building J on the Western Waterfront, it is expected that the Christeen will return to service in April 2011, so that spring school programs will not be affected.

Just to give you a clue to the costs – remember volunteers are again doing the work under supervision of shipwright Josh Herman. The total campaign is for $260,000; of that the keel and mast replacement cost $150,000; a new mast cost $10,000, and a Christeen Capital Account/Endowment of $100,000 is needed. As of December 1, 2010, $222,810 has been pledged by individuals and foundations toward the repairs. This leaves the challenge of raising $37,190. Please help save the Christeen. As you can see the community has responded to the need. Just a bit more will get her afloat.