Big news at the museum! Our board of trustees has approved the acquisition of the historic vessel Mary E, believed to be the oldest Bath-built wooden vessel still afloat. She is also the oldest fishing schooner built in the state of Maine that is still sailing.
Built in Bath in 1906 by shipbuilder Thomas E. Hagan (in a Houghton shipyard where BIW is today), and restored in Bath in 1965 by William R. Donnell II (on the grounds of what is now Maine Maritime Museum), Mary E is a two-masted clipper schooner with a sparred length of 73 feet.
Mary E will be delivered to the museum in spring of 2017, and the restoration work started by her current owner, Matt Culen of Pelham, N.Y., will be completed on the museum’s campus, giving the public the opportunity to witness historic shipbuilding techniques first hand.
Following completion of the work, Mary E will be docked at the museum, serving as a historic vessel accessible to everyone. Mary E will also serve as the ambassador of Maine Maritime Museum and the City of Ships, traveling to events up and down the coast.