In 1638, English settlers bought land from the local Agawam tribe, and began farming and fishing in the area. The village of Essex, was then known as the Chebacco Parish in Ipswich.
The reliance on fishing and other collecting from the sea such as clamming, meant they needed boats. By the 1660s, land for shipbuilding was set aside where the Essex Shipbuilding Museum now stands. They began building small boats known as Chebacco boats for use on the Essex River and coastal waters. |
By the late 1700s, shipbuilders built a new vessel each winter to use for fishing during the summer, and then sold the vessels in other ports during the fall. Because the shipbuilders constructed such good boats, captains from those other ports began to request new vessels.
Eventually, the shipbuilders began to forego the fishing season in summer and built vessels year round! A typical shipyard was a plot of land beside the river with a few shipways, a shop or shed for tools and space to store timber. Almost none of the shipyards had an on-site office so business would be conducted at the shipwright's home. [2] |
As time passed, the boats being built grew in size and number. In the mid-nineteenth century, the "shipbuilding industry so dominated Essex that it touched the lives of every one of its citizens and transformed the town into one large ‘shipbuilding factory’,” according to Luther Burnham. In 1850, as many as 60 vessels launched from 15 shipyards during that one year in Essex.[3]
Many schooners like the Ada K. Damon were built in Essex for use in the fishing fleets out of Gloucester. As many as 4000 boats were built in their shipyards, until engine powered boats began to predominate in the 1950s and the building of wooden boats declined. |
ONLY seven old schooners from the Essex shipyards are still known to exist today!
One of these is the 1927 schooner Evelina M. Goulart, hauled-out and under a cover at the Essex Shipbuilding Museum.
Some others:
One of these is the 1927 schooner Evelina M. Goulart, hauled-out and under a cover at the Essex Shipbuilding Museum.
Some others:
- Lettie G. Howard (1893) at South Street Seaport (NY),
- Ernestina-Morrissey (1894),
- L.A. Dunton (1921) at Mystic Seaport,
- pilot schooner Roseway (1925),
- fishing schooner Adventure (1926)
In 1875, Ebenezer Burnham built the Ada K. Damon at his shipyard in Essex, MA. This Grand Banks schooner was first used for fishing, and then was purchased for hauling sand for construction work in Boston. The schooner saw 32 years of service, which is proof of the superb craftsmanship of Essex boatbuilders that is still highly prized. Essex shipbuilding still continues today. At the Burnham shipyard, wooden boats are built and repaired. We can still learn a lot from these boats in any condition, even if they are wrecked on the beach like the Ada K Damon. |
Sources:
[1] University of Washington Library, Seattle,https://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/fishimages/id/35886/
[2] NPS Ships & Shipbuilding, https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/maritime/ships.htm
[3] Visit Essex website, www.visitessexma.com/essex-history
[1] University of Washington Library, Seattle,https://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/fishimages/id/35886/
[2] NPS Ships & Shipbuilding, https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/maritime/ships.htm
[3] Visit Essex website, www.visitessexma.com/essex-history