The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (CBMM) in St. Michaels, MD begins a new speaker series entitled “Working Waterfront” on Thursday, November 1, with later sessions on Friday, November 16 and Thursday, November 29. Held in the Van Lennep Auditorium along the museum’s waterfront campus, the series welcomes CBMM members and the general public, with pre-registration needed.
From 6-8pm on Thursday, November 1, “Working Waterfront: Delaware” gives participants an in-depth look at the museum’s 1912 river tug, Delaware. Now celebrating her centennial, the Delaware was built in Bethel, DE, and is one of the last survivors of Bethel’s great age of wooden boatbuilding. Join CBMM’s Vessel Maintenance Manager Michael Gorman, CBMM boatyard staff, and others with connections to Delaware’s long Chesapeake Bay history as they share a closer look at her recent restoration and more.
From 6-8pm on Friday, November 16, “Working Waterfront: Tide, Trade, and Tugs” presents an evening with the Ward Family of Deltaville, VA, who operate one of the last “mom and pop” tugboat companies on the Chesapeake Bay. Join them for a conversation as several generations of the Ward family share stories of transporting crabs, oysters, produce, grain, and other goods by wooden buyboat, tug, and barge throughout the tributaries of the Bay.
From 6-8pm on Thursday, November 29, “Working Waterfront: Women of the Maritime World” presents an evening of discussion with some of the women who make the maritime world tick. Headed by Nancy Taylor Robson, author of Woman in the Wheelhouse, the talk will explore her experiences living and working onboard tugs as the wife of a tugboat captain and a licensed mate. The conversation will also include the voices of other females from all kinds of work, both educational and industrial, within the traditionally male field.
The cost per session is $8 for CBMM members, or $10 for non-members, with pre-registration needed by calling Helen Van Fleet at 410-745-4941. For more information, visit www.cbmm.org or call 410-745-2916.