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Maritime Gloucester and Senator Tarr Welcome Schooner Ardelle
Gloucester, MA, August 24, 2011
Maritime
Gloucester and Senator Bruce Tarr welcomed the Pinky Schooner Ardelle
to Gloucester on Wednesday night marking the beginning of a new era for
the center, the harbor and the city. With two Essex-built
schooners – the Thomas E. Lannon and the Schooner Ardelle - now calling
Gloucester their homeport, the Ardelle will enhance and add to the
cultural and historic importance of this port.
Sen. Bruce Tarr and
Maritime Gloucester president Geoffrey Richon were on the docks to
greet the Ardelle after her maiden voyage from Essex on Wednesday.
The
schooner pulled into the dock with most of the building crew aboard,
and with family, supporters and friends on shore to greet her, there
was a sense of excitement that a traditionally-built and designed Essex
schooner will be seen – and likely – remembered by generations of Cape
Ann residents now and in the future.
Senator
Bruce Tarr (left) and Geoffrey Richon of Maritime Gloucester welcome Harold
Burnham and the Schooner Ardelle to its new home.
“This schooner is really about our heritage, about
who we are,” said Sen. Tarr (R) at Maritime Gloucester – formerly
called the Maritime Heritage Center.
“We do have to continue to
fight to preserve our fishing legacy and our maritime past, present and
future. Having a schooner here at Maritime Gloucester, for our young
people to see and learn on, is a very important moment for our city and
for us.” Burnham, 44, also addressed the crowd at Maritime
Gloucester when he said that, “having both the Thomas E. Lannon and the
Schooner Ardelle in Gloucester – both Essex-built boats – is very
important to our heritage and our legacy, in that in order to have
authentic cultural tourism we must first and foremost preserve out
unique culture.
The
Ardelle’s arrival on Wednesday evening marked the end of an 11-month
building project that took place at the Burnham Boatyard in Essex. The
crew of shipwrights came from all over the North Shore and worked as
volunteers, lending their skills and time tirelessly. After both a long
year of boatbuilding and a long day of sailing around from the Essex
River to Gloucester with a stop over in Rockport the crew were greeted
by a grateful and supportive crowd. The crew includes Justin Ingersoll
of Essex, Zach Teal of Essex, Frances Cleary of Essex, Bernie Powers of
Beverly, Chuck Redman of North Andover, Chad Gadbois of Beverly, Henry
Szosta of Beverly, Steve Willard of Marblehead, Bruce Slifer of
Gloucester, Pierre Erhard of Wenham– among others – were aboard for the
sail.
With winds gusting to 20-knots, the Ardelle handled
beautifully and sailed with speeds of up to 8 knots. Dr. Robin
Tattersoll, a special member of the Ardelle crew and former Olympic
sailor helmed much of the way. “She sails beautifully,” he was heard to
say to Harold, as the Ardelle reached 8 knots on a broad reach off
Eastern Point. And, the sentiment was shared on shore as the Ardelle
arrived at Maritime Gloucester a fan held up a sign that said simply
“Absolutely Perfect.”
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