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Article: Saving the skipjacks: America's last sail fishing fleet is an endangered species--but a restoration program aims to keep it afloat. (Cover Story).
- Article from:
- National Fisherman
- Article date:
- September 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Diversified Publications. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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That a sailing fleet of commercial fishing boats--almost half of them built before 1911--still exists in the United States seems out of place. As far-fetched as it might sound, Maryland's sailing skipjack fleet is still alive--though in a general state of deterioration.
But with the help of a state-generated financial package and repair work being done to the skipjacks at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum's boatyard in St. Michaels, Md., the skipjacks are slowly being rebuilt.
Skipjacks--the last commercial sailing boats in North America--are beamy, wooden sailing craft with centerboards, raking masts, jibs and leg-of-mutton mainsails. There were ...