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October 13-19, 2014  From Baltimore, Maryland, to Portsmouth, Virginia Schooners underway at the beginning of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race. There are schooners here, there and just about everywhere participating in the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race (GCBSR). The 25th annual race begins Thursday, October 16th on the south side of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge near Annapolis, Maryland. The schooners race throughout the afternoon and night into the next day to their designated finish line. For classes A and AA, the finish is an east-west line at Thimble Shoal Light and classes B and C finish at Windmill Point. Then they proceed on to docking in Portsmouth, Virginia along the quaint historic seaport's basins and seawall. Schooners rafted together at the High Street Landing at the end of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race. Photo by Joe Elder. With 34 entries in this year's race represented from all around the Chesapeake Bay and as far away as Key West, Florida, they...

Kevin Collins holds one of his sea bowls. Inspired by marine life that survive in the brackish habitats that exist along our Virginia shore, kevin Collins brings to life a unique collection of ceramic (porcelain) creations for your coastal home. The forms take on shapes of modeled bowls with oyster shells and barnicles and shell colored inner surfaces in shades of pink, coral, blues, greens and purples. Kevin's earthenware creations also take on the form of shell lamps, some actually starting with a piece of driftwood with small sea creatures added to the natural surface. His collection also includes shell-designed necklaces and earrings and even individual oyster shell and clumps of barnacles as refrigerator magnets. His designs are endless and we never know what Kevin will come up with next. These porcelain art pieces are functional   art oieces and perfect decor item for your beach and coastal home. Sea-inspired coral colored ceramic bowl with barnacles. Kevin's first experi...

Massive 48 star US ensign laid out in front of Skipjack Nautical Wares. It's a wonder what one might find digging around at local antiques and flea markets. And that is what we encountered this last Saturday at the Olde Towne Antiques to Flea Market here in Portsmouth, Virginia. Held the first Saturday of each month, the Olde Towne Portsmouth event is always full of interesting items, from the typical yard sale flea type finds to the most unexpected treasures. Last year, I discovered and purchased a Philadelphia windsor bowback side chair, branded with the name of the maker, John Letchworth (1759-1843). His shop was located on Third Street between Chestnut and Walnut (1784) and he actually made chairs for Thomas Jefferson and used at Monticello. More on this in a later blog. A view above the flag. Magnificent! This time we discovered an extremely large pile of wool bunting stuck in the corner of the vendors booth that appeared to be the colors and design of an American flag. Upon c...

America 2.0 at the beginning of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race, 2011. Photo by Joe Elder aboard the Schooner Spirit of Independence.      Olde Towne Portsmouth once again hosted the finale of the 23rd Annual Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race  from Baltimore Mayland with 37 participating schooners. Here is a photographic study of these exceptional sailing vessels docked along Olde Towne's waterside. Enjoy! An 18th century cannon stands sentinal  in front of the schooner "Mystic Whaler" docked along side the High Street basin. Photo by Joe Elder. HISTORY Schooner "Adventurer" figurehead. Photo by Joe Elder. Schooner racing on the Chesapeake Bay is rooted in the trade rivalry between Baltimore, Maryland, at the northern end of the Bay, and Portsmouth/Norfolk, Virginia, at the southern end. The fastest sailing vessels delivered goods and people to their destinations and often garnered the best price for their cargo by beating slower schooners into port. Ov...

On the horizon lies a historic American milestone, an extraordinary occasion for the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Bicentennial of the War of 1812, the writing of the Star Spangled Banner, planned together with the spectacle of OpSail 2012. OpSail 2012 Virginia is collaboration between Operation Sail Inc. (OpSail) national, the United States Navy, Norfolk Festevents and th e  36th Annual AT&T Harborfest events, and hundreds of national, state and local organizations. From June 1 -12, 2012, the Port of Virginia will once again host an impressive fleet of tall ships, navy and military war ships representing the world. OpSail 2012 Virginia  and Harborfest is planned to illuminate the community with spectacle and festivity, and will place our Commonwealth front and center on the world stage. Tall ship 'KALMAR NYCKEL'  will be participating in OpSail 2012 and along  the Portsmouth, Virginia waterfront.  Photo by Joe Elder. This wi...

August 18, 1941 - February 14, 2012 Captain J.C. Waters teaching a maritime course aboard his schooner Spirit of Independence.  Photo by Joe Elder. We first met J.C. Waters in the spring of 2006 when he and his daughter Joy visited our store (then at 629 High Street) while on a voyage up the Atlantic coast aboard the"Spirit of Independence". J.C. had recently completed and launched the schooner in his hometown of Independence, Missouri, and was in search of a new location to relocate the schooner. We talked extensively during his first visit about the "Spirit of Independence" and told J.C. all about our quaint historic seaport, Olde Towne Portsmouth. He invited Alison and me to visit his schooner moored at Tidewater Yacht, so we met him after closing for a tour of the Spirit. What a magnificent vessel it was.  We stayed in contact via e-mail and J.C. kept us abreast of his travel and search for a new place to call home. A year passed by when we received correspo...

Schooner Days 2010,  Portsmouth, Virginia October 15-16, 2010   Schooner Days is a celebration of the world’s largest gathering of schooners along the waterfront of Olde Towne Portsmouth, Virginia. It's held this year in conjunction with the 21st Annual Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race from Baltimore to Portsmouth- racing to save the bay !   Schooners LADY MARYLAND  and LIBERTY CLIPPER at Portsmouth, Virginia's Schooner Days. This two-day celebration offers numerous maritime-related activities along the seawall and at the High Street Landing; many are free to the general public. Schooners line the seawall at Portsmouth, Virginia's High Street Landing The Portsmouth waterfront from North Landing to beyond the High Street Landing will showcase over 40 schooners from local and distant ports and is considered the largest gathering of schooners in the world. A gathering of  great vintage wooden schooners are clustered together in Olde Towne Portsmouth for Sc...