Thank you to OCH member Peter Brackenbury for bringing another wonderful film to our attention.
In this episode of the the PBS series Craft in America, enjoy a look inside the historic Lowell’s Boat Shop, a National Historic Landmark and working museum in Amesbury, MA.
Lowell’s manager and boat builder Graham McKay provides an intimate look inside this remarkable establishment, a shop which has been producing traditionally-made wooden boats since 1793. As a non-profit ‘working museum’, Lowell’s does admirable work “preserving and perpetuating the art and craft of wooden boat building” through initiatives including a high school apprentice program.
Students help build a boat a few days a week after school. Some discover a passion for boat building, woodworking and making things by hand. It’s programs such as these which provide hope that these historic boats, and the knowledge required to build them, continue to live on.
William McCaffrey says:
This country needs far more people willing to preserve the skills, knowledge and tools of our heritage. I spent my career designing hardware and software supporting the computer age. When I retired I was drawn back to traditional woodworking and later building wooden boats. There is so much that needs to be learned with so few real teachers. I see a trip to this historic treasure in my future.
David Tew says:
and this: http://www.yankeemagazine.com/article/features/new-yankee-craftsmen
David Tew says:
http://nathanielphilbrick.com/books/in-the-heart-of-the-sea/preface/