Campaigns Aim to Restore Historic Landmark Vessel

The schooner Adventure, a U.S. National Historic Landmark, has been selected as an Official Project of Save America's Treasures, a public-private partnership between the White House Millennium Council and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The schooner Adventure joins a list of Official Projects that includes the Star Spangled Banner, the Washington Monument and Thomas Edison's workshop. The designation of "Official Project" recognizes the continuous efforts of The Gloucester Adventure, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring and preserving the fishing schooner. Through the countless hours and hard work of volunteers, funds have been raised to restore the bow, most of the port side, and the entire starboard side. The historic restoration process involves hauling, blocking and shoring the 122-foot vessel to retain its shape while sections of the hull are taken apart and rebuilt. Additionally, Adventure was recently chosen to be included in the 1999 "Catalogue for Philanthropy." The Catalogue, conceived by the Ellis L. Phillips Foundation and supported by a coalition of leading Massachusetts grantmakers, profiles 100 of Massachusetts' outstanding educational, environmental and human service agencies. The Adventure was chosen from 270 organizations by senior professional grantmakers. The schooner Adventure, a symbol of the New England fisheries' sea-faring heritage, now ranks among the top benefit organizations as a symbol for charitable giving and volunteerism. One of the last five surviving Gloucester dory fishing schooners, the Adventure is an icon of the nation's fishing industry and a centerpiece of America's oldest fishing port. It serves as a living memorial to the 10,000 Gloucester fishermen who perished at sea. Built in 1926, the Adventure was the last American Dory Trawler, fishing in the North Atlantic when she retired in 1953.