
These records are found in the collection of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland. Uncurated search results are presented to give researchers and interested readers an idea of whether CBMM’s archives contain information about this vessel and whether it may be worthwhile to contact CBMM for further investigation. Uncurated results may be inaccurate or incomplete.
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Search mode: Exact Name. Search phrase(s): "John F. Mitchell"; "John F Mitchell". Results returned: 12. Results displayed in this table: 12.
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| Fetch? | Row ID | Catalog # | Object Name | Title | Artist/Maker | Date Made | Place Made | Description | Full Image | CBMM Cat. Page |
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| 1 | 8888.0079.0000.00 | documents | The Owens Yacht Company Collection:This collec | Range, Cir 01/01/1925 - 12/31/1965 | Oversize folders 1-6 are in CSC FF 66. The bulk of this collection begins on CSC 15C4 and continues on 15C5<CR><CR>The Owens Yacht Company Collection:This collection is composed of advertisements, catalogs for both parts and accessories for Owens vessels, newspaper articles and other published material relating to the Owens business or family and images and photographs related to the company. Also included are numerous plans for boats, data regarding distribution and equipment as well as brochures and booklets that contain pertinent information for potential sellers of Owens boats. There are also many large boat plans that have been donated to the museum by the Owens brothers and former employees of the Owens Yacht Company. There is detailed information regarding Concorde Yachts (successor to the Owens Yacht Division of Brunswick Corp.) including owners' manuals and test data. Several folders containing information about the Owens Men's Club also are included in the collection.Background Information In 1925, Charlie Owens started a boat building business after resigning from his job at Westinghouse and prepared to move his family to Annapolis to pursue this new endeavor. Charlie's wife, Mary died in 1918 of influenza and he was left to raise his five children: Charles Jr., Norman, John, William, and Molly. Charles and his children began to build boats for the United States Naval Academy to use for training purposes. Business was prospering despite the Depression, however, Charlie Owens died suddenly in 1933 at the age of fifty-eight, leaving the business to his five children. Three of the Owens children quickly took on the bulk of the responsibility and distributed the work among them: Charlie became the marketing manager, Norman the designer, and Jack the treasurer of the Owens Yacht Company (William had no interest in the boating industry and instead became an ophthalmologist). They opened a factory in East Baltimore in 1936 to be able to meet the needs of their growing clientele. Once World War II began, the Owens Company began to produce boats for the United States military. After Pearl Harbor they were asked to begin design on a LVCP or landing craft vehicle personnel to be used for a possible beach invasion. The Owens boats were used in 1944 during the D-Day invasion and by the end of the war they had built 1160 LCVP landing craft and 336 other boats. After the war, the Owens Company returned to building pleasure boats and soon became second in the nation in their production. In 1961, Charles retired after he and his brothers sold the Owens Yacht Company to the Brunswick Corporation. Brunswick began to produce Concorde Yachts. Soon after, the Brunswick Corporation sold Maurice L. Test of Florida the Concorde Yacht Division of the corporation, which became the Test Concorde Inc.; although the Owens name was retained until financial difficulties forced the company to close. In 1972, the IRS foreclosed on Test after discovering he had not filed income taxes. The IRS held an auction to sell all materials, machinery, parts, etc. and all facets of the Owens Yacht Company were officially closed.The Owens Yacht Marquee Club is an Owens association, and some of the collected materials pertain to the club's activities and communications. Information for this background information regarding the Owens Yacht Company was taken directly from the contents of Folder 1 of the collection and Jack Owens' "Owens Brothers-Pioneer Boat Builders" piece that is found in the library vertical file.SubjectsCharles Owens, Sr.Charles Owens, Jr.John "Jack" OwensMary OwensMolly OwensNorman OwensWilliam OwensBrunswick CorporationConcorde YachtsOwens Men's ClubOwens Yacht CompanyOwens Yacht Marquee ClubMaurice L. TestTest Concorde Inc. Subject: Charles Owens Sr. Subject: Charles Owens Jr. Subject: Mr Jack Owens | No image URL. | View | |||
| 2 | 8888.0077.0000.00 | documents | John. G. Earle Papers:<CR>The collection is a vertic | Range, Cir 01/01/1894 - 12/31/1991 | This collection begins on CSC 15C3 and continues on CSC 15C4.John. G. Earle Papers:The collection is a vertical file of notes, ship plans, letters, drawings, articles, and photographs assembled by John Earle on varied Chesapeake maritime research topics, and individuals with whom he corresponded. Arranged alphabetically in three large boxes, two are of nautical subjects, and the other, people. Individuals are listed by last name, and vessels by name or type. Chronologically, the collection includes correspondence from the 1910s to the 1980s (not all involving Earle), but including original printed material, the collection dates from 1894 to 1991. Topics that contained no original research by Earle were removed to the library vertical file. Note: All photographs in the collection have been removed to the library photo archive, and are listed under accession number 1176. Photocopies of originals remain in the folders listed below. Biographical Background (from MS 30)Born in Easton, Maryland on March 14, 1901, John Goldsborough Earle expressed a love for and an interest in the vessels of the Chesapeake Bay early in life. It would be this interest that ultimately shaped his professional life, with Earle able to parlay this curiosity into the receipt of a degree in naval architecture and mechanical engineering from Lehigh University upon his graduation in 1926. After working for the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, from 1943-1946 Earle served as the special assistant to the chief engineer at the U.S. Maritime Commission in Washington, D.C. Earle then moved to Moylan, Pennsylvania where he was employed by the New York-based Nordberg Manufacturing Company. During this time Earle pursued the application of the diesel engine to the maritime environment, ultimately serving on the Ships' Machinery Committee of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. Earle retired in 1966 and served as a member of the Board of Governors for the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, and returned to Easton in 1979. A thorough and exhaustive researcher, Earle never ceased in his quest to study and document the indigenous water craft of the Chesapeake Bay. Earle's scholarship put him in contact with many of the twentieth century's foremost maritime historians, including Howard I. Chapelle and Robert H. Burgess, and his work was particularly valuable to Marion V. Brewington in his study of Chesapeake Bay log canoes and bugeyes. Earle also contributed works to Yachting and Chesapeake Bay magazines. Prior to his death on May 21, 1992, Earle was presented with the Historic Preservation Award by the Historic District Commission of Talbot County for his lifelong dedication and devotion to the preservation of the Chesapeake Bay's maritime heritage. Subject: John G Earle | No image URL. | View | |||
| 3 | 8888.0046.0000.00 | documents | Cambridge, Maryland Custom Bureau Enrollment and L | Exact 02/01/1988 - | Cambridge, Maryland Custom Bureau Enrollment and License Certificates (1923 - 1958)The collection is comprised of 377 vessel enrollment records for Cambridge, Maryland dating between 1923 and 1958.BackgroundAlthough it is unclear who saved the Cambridge enrollment records, they were donated to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum by Mr. Russ Rippell in 1993.SubjectsChesapeake Bay vessels, 1920s-1950s; Maryland Custom Bureau Records; Vessel Enrollment Records; Cambridge, MD--History; Maryland--HistoryCambridge, Maryland Enrollment Records:Please see attached spreadsheet for a specific listing by Doc. #. The enrollment records were arranged chronologically | No image URL. | View | |||
| 4 | 8888.0008.0000.00 | documents | Edward Willey (1814--1891) Papers (1833--1889). | Range, Exa 01/01/1833 - 12/31/1889 | One newspaper in in CSC FF 57.Edward Willey (1814--1891) Papers (1833--1889). The collection is comprised of personal and business papers of Edward Willey, a St. Michaels boatbuilder. Biographical BackgroundA contemporary biographical listing of Mr. Willey was not, found, although he was referred to in various records.His father was a resident of St. Michaels, so Edward Willey was apparently born here. Willey was a boatbuilder in St. Michaels from 1840 to at least 1882, on San Domingo Creek.He was elected a Town Commissioner in 1848. He was active in St. Luke's Methodist Church (then knownas Sardis Chapel) and sold the property for the cemetary to the church. He owned stock in the Navy Point Steam Mill company.Willey is buried in the St. Luke's Methodist Church cemetary. According to the donor of the papers, Willey was married twice, first to a woman named Dorsey, and then to Susanna Hambleton (1827--1900). He had four children by each marriage. The children were: Edward S., Alban C., John, 1854-d.1945, Samuel,1856-1945, Ella R., Angelina Dorsey Willey (married John Hambleton), Susie or Susannah H. and one other daughter.His wife, Susanna is buried along with Willey in the Methodist Cemetary.Scope and ContentThe papers show an interesting time period in St. Michaels history. Boatbuilding had suffered a lull for a period of years after the War of 1812 and was just being rejuvenated by the oyster industry when Mr. Willey was building boats.According to the donor, Edward Willey's great grandson, Willey built many pungies and schooners. He cited the VIRGINIA DARE as the largest vessel Willey built.The papers present an interesting picture of a growth period in St. Michaels' history. Also interesting are two photos included in the collection: one of Edward Willey, and one of his wife Susanna.Subjects: boatbuilding; St. Michaels; Sardis Chapel; Willey, Edward.------------- Subject: Edward Willey | No image URL. | View | |||
| 5 | 8888.0018.0000.00 | documents | Ernest Tucker (1913 - 1981) Papers (1936 - 1979) | Range, Exa 01/01/1936 - 12/31/1979 | Ernest Tucker (1913 - 1981) Papers (1936 - 1979)The collection is comprised of correspondence, newspaper articles, brochures, etc., concerning Ernest Tucker's career as a boat designer and sailor. Also included are photographs of Tucker-designed boats, power and sailing boatsand Chesapeake Bay boatbuilders. The papers were donated to the Museum by his widow, Jane Foster Tucker.Biographical BackgroundErnest Tucker was born on the family estate, Hilton, in Walbrook, a northwestern section of Baltimore. He contracted polio before the age of 2 and was required to wear braces on both legs.Tucker developed a strong interest in boatbuilding and design from an early age. He built his first boat, a 12'5" sailing skiff when only twelve. He attended Johns Hopkins University, School of Mechanical Engineering, 1933-1938.In 1942:, he was employed by the Owens Yacht Co., Dundalk, as project engineer for 36' LCVP's for the Navy. After the war he designed the Owens 40' auxiliary cutter. In 1946 Tucker started at the Annapolis Yacht Yard as draughtsman (which later was sold to John Trumphy and Sons) and worked on many famous boats such as Makarra and Lenore, a famous Presidential yacht.Tucker purchased his beloved double-ended Nassau-built sloop, Half Pint, in 1945, which he used to sail the Bay until the time of his death. In 1958 he became self-employed. His designs included the Dickerson 35, 36, 40 and 41 for the William Dickerson Yard of Fishing Creek (laterTrappe). Always found on the drawings was his trademark, a flying duck. Tucker also made drawings for John Bailey of Tunis Mills, Marine Contractor.After the death of his mother, Ernest Tucker lived on a houseboat in Galesville, Md., was married in 1960, and in 1962 moved to Oxford. The designer was a good friend of C. Lowndes Johnson, noted Talbot County Comet class designer, and his wife Clara. He was a founding member of the Classic Yacht Club of America, member of the Sailing Club of the Chesapeake, and Tred Avon Yacht Club. Ernest Tucker died in August 1981.Scope and ContentThe material is divided into two parts. The first consists of biographical information and information on boats designed by Ernest Tucker. Included in the latter is the well-known series of Dickerson ketches built by DickersonBoatbuilders of Trappe, Maryland. Other designs include deadrise workboats built by Chesapeake Marine Industries of Trappe, and the famous Owens cutters.Ernest Tucker was also a recorder of many varities of sailing and power crafton the Chesapeake through the medium of the camera. Many of these boats no longer exist. Also of value are photographs of many well-known Bay boatbuilders, particularly from Dorchester County. An index of boats is available. The photographs have been divided up into broad subject categories.SubjectsBoatdesigning Boatbuilding Subject: Mrs Ernest Tucker | No image URL. | View | |||
| 6 | 8888.0054.0000.00 | documents | THOMAS C. GILLMER<CR>MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION<CR><CR>Thomas | Exact 01/01/1981 - 12/31/1993 | THOMAS C. GILLMER<CR>MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION<CR><CR>Thomas C.Gillmer was born in 1911 at Warren, Ohio. He became interested in ships at an early age, entering the U.S. Naval Academy and graduating in 1935. During the late 1930s he served aboard light cruisers in the Pacific and Mediterranean. During World War II he served as an instructor in naval construction, damage control, and marine engineering at the Naval Academy, eventually becoming chairman of the naval engineering department. In 1952 Gillmer wrote Naval Construction a Ship Stability, a basic text still in use in the naval architecture program at the Academy. He retired from active teaching at the Academy in 1967 and began to devote full time to the design of yachts and ship replicas. His first successful yacht design was the 1946 Blue Moon. Subsequent designs were the Southern Cross and Seawind series. He designed Pride of Baltimore 3,(1976-77), the pungy Lady Maryland (1979), and Pride 2L Baltimore 11. (1988). Most recently Gillmer prepared a study of the USS Constitution for her overhaul by the navy. He is the author of several books and numerous articles.See also Oral History tape No. 93 with transcript and list of books and articles.The manuscript collection consists of six papers:1. "Signposts Towards the Origin of Ship Design," prepared for the 5th Naval History Symposium, Annapolis, 1 October 1981.2. "Evolving Ship Design Technology As Revealed in Wrecks of Post Medieval Ships." 3rd International Symposium of Boat and Ship Archeology, Stockholm, 1982.3. "Authentic Replica Ships: Theory and Practice." International Symposium on Ship Construction in Antiquity, Delphi, Greece, August 1987.4. "The Importance of Skeleton First Ship Construction to the Development of Rational Ship Design." International Symposium on Ship and Boat Archeology, Amsterdam 1988.5. "The Second Pride of Baltimore, Her Design and Construction." 9th Sailing Yacht Symposium, Annapolis 1989.6. "USS Constitution: An Assessment for Her Future." Naval History Symposium, Annapolis 1993. Subject: Thomas C Gillmer | No image URL. | View | |||
| 7 | 8888.0059.0000.00 | documents | Captain Irvin S. Wheatley Ship's Papers<CR><CR>Backgro | Range, Cir 01/01/1885 - 12/31/1894 | This collection begins on CSC 15D1 and continues onto 15D2.Captain Irvin S. Wheatley Ship's PapersBackgroundA large number of documents were donated to the museum by Karen Potter a descendent of the Wheatleys through her paternal grandmother's family. The papers consist of bills, receipts, invoices, and business and personal papers, mostly related to the activities of the two-masted trading schooner Edward L. Martin during the last two decades of the 19'h century.What is known about Captain Irvin Steven Ralph Wheatley (January 19, 1860-March 14, 1941) can be gleaned from the papers in this collection, U.S. Census records, and an internet genealogy. Born January 19, 1860, he was from a large family of Galestown, Dorchester County, Maryland, about twelve miles from Seaford, Delaware. He was captain of the schooner Hattie C. Wheatley for some time before becoming captain of the Martin from about 1885 until 1894. He owned shares in the Martin varying from one-third to one-eighth at different times during those years. Subsequently he was captain of the schooner John Q. Ferguson from January 1895 until at least December 1896. Irvin Wheatley had five brothers, two of whom died as children. The survivors were: Luther Elijah (June 1858-December 1931); George Edward (November 1856-July 1927); and Albert Ellis (September 1873-February 1955), and Frederick Seth (August 1858-August 1874). Of these, Luther figures most prominently in this collection. From personal letters (Box 7), it appears that while Irvin Wheatley was busy as captain of various ships, Luther managed a farm Irvin owned near Galestown. Irvin Wheatley apparently retired from the sea about 1897 and also took up farming. In 1930 both Irvin and his wife, Effie L. (October 1, 1866-August 11, 1935), still resided near Galestown.The schooner Edward L. Martin's official No. was 135629. She was built by Stephen (?) W. Kinsey in Sussex County, Delaware in 1882. She was of 84.95 gross, and 80.70 net tonnage. Her dimensions in feet were 87.2 length, 23.6 breadth, and 6.8 depth. About 1942, after running through numerous owners, she was bought by John B. Conway, converted to power, renamed Honey B, and put into the "dude" boat trade. In 1953 she was bought by Hugh B. Emmons and was destroyed the same year by fire near Oxford, Maryland.Scope and ContentThe core of this collection is an extremely comprehensive set of commercial shipping documents covering the period from 1885 to 1894. These include shipping instructions from the consignee of cargo, charter parties (contracts between shippers and vessel owners, shipping articles (agreements between ship owners and crews), and numerous other papers relating to the shipping business. Of special interest in this collection are the papers related to two trips made by the Edward L. Martin to the Bahamas to pick up loads of pineapples. These papers include instructions, charter parties, articles, as well as the many customs forms, clearances, quarantine receipts, and health certificates required at U. S. ports and from Bahamian authorities. (At the time the Bahamas were part of the British West Indies.)Sub'ectsMembers of Wheatley family: Effie L., wife of IrvinAddie E., and Roxie E., daughters of Irvin Luther E., brotherPhenie, wife of Luther Albert E., brother George E. H., brotherStella (Estelle S.) sister.Owners of schooner Edward L. Martin (during Wheatley's tenure) Josephus CollinsWm. T. MooreWm. EllisGeorge EllisE. J. EllisIrvin S. Wheatley. Subject: Capt. Irvin S. Weatley | No image URL. | View | |||
| 8 | 8888.0090.0000.00 | documents | Penso Papers | This collection begins on CSC 15B1 and continues on 15B2, 15B3, and 15B4. One oversize folder is located in RR FF 3; the contents have 2 copies and a negative of sketch of two people in the Racing dinghy Penguin. | No image URL. | View | ||||
| 9 | 1994.0007.0001.00 | oil paintings | Painting of the "Gloucester" by Otto Muhlenfeld, a | Muhlenfeld, Otto __Artist | Exact 01/01/1896 - | Painting of the "Gloucester" by Otto Muhlenfeld, a merchants & miners steamship Condition: good. | ![]() | View | ||
| 10 | 8888.0104.0000.00 | papers | Louise Hayman papers on skipjack restoration | Papers of Ms. Louise L. Hayman<CR><CR>Background<CR>This collection concerns the Maryland skipjack fleet, including documents from the Maryland 2000 Save Our Skipjacks Task Force meeting notes, correspondence regarding the fleet's registration as one of the 11 Most Endangered Historic Places, information concerning the fleet's condition, correspondence with the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, various articles and publications, etc. Also in this collection are two copies of The Maryland Skipjack Fleet: A Model Preservation Plan and a VHS recording of the CBS Morning News broadcast on fishing vessels from Oct. 19, 2001. <CR>In November 1999, the Maryland Commission for Celebration 2000 formed the Save Our Skipjacks Task Force. The Task Force considered ways to increase safety and minimize weather-related risks for commercial vessels. The Task Force also addressed the repair and maintenance of the fleet, and the availability of insurance coverage for the vessels and their crews. <CR>Initial recommendations were made by the Task Force on April 17, 2000. Those recommendations brought relaxation of Department of Natural Resources regulations on the use of power for dredging; establishment of a loan program to repair and equip skipjacks (administered by the Maryland Historical Trust); and formation of a skipjack restoration center and educational program at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels (funded in part by the Maryland Historical Trust). The Task Force is still considering matters relating to the availability of affordable hull and liability insurance; sustained funding for the Museum restoration program; formal incorporation of the skipjack fleet into the State's tourism industry; and greater access to oysters for the skipjacks. <CR>The Chesapeake Bay Skipjack Fleet has been recognized as a national treasure in danger of extinction. On June 6, 2002, the Fleet was named to the 2002 list of America's Eleven Most Endangered Historic Places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. <CR>The Task Force has been inactive since September 2003. <CR>Scope and Content<CR>The items in this collection are contained in one manuscript box with 5 file folders and 1 comb-bound book. | No image URL. | View | ||||
| 11 | 2020.0013.0001 | skiffs, crabbing | Crab Skiff | Parks, Charles H. | circa 1928 | Fishing Creek - MD | Crab skiff built by Charles H. Parks and used to harvest peeler crabs out of Hooper Island. Charles H. Parks opperated a seafood packing house till the 1960s. | ![]() | View | |
| 12 | 1969.0050.0001.00 | swan decoys | Tundra swan decoy | Barnes, Samuel T __Creator ||Holly, James T __Creator | Circa 1890 | Tundra Swan decoy, by Sam Barnes or James Holly of Havre de Grace. Number one of a small series of swan decoys by this maker; number three of this series is in collection of the Shelburne Museum; the second is in a private collection. Condition: Fair, repair work to neck, paint chipped from tail, crack in back repaired w/wood putty. See Decoy Magazine (March/April 2007), pp. 42-3; also Decoy Magazine (March/April 1993) pp. 9-10 for discussion of the maker of this decoy. | ![]() | View |
Created 2026 by Don Barker, CBMM volunteer, for the Chesapeake Shipbuilding Project. shipbuilding@sailingworkboats.es