Books for the Boater in Your Life

Gloucester on the Wind is an engaging history of this town, with never before seen historical photographs.

Since the development of photography in the mid-nineteenth century, the camera has been used as a tool of both discovery and preservation. Photographs bring alive our image of the past, and can open a floodgate of memories and nostalgia or inspire curiosity and a sense of history. Originally founded by a fishing company from Dorchester, England, in 1623, Gloucester has always been linked to fishing and the sea. By 1870 Gloucester was the leading fishing port in the Western Hemisphere, and its great fleet of fast, white-winged schooners ranged deep into the heart of the Atlantic in search of cod, haddock, halibut, and mackerel. These stunningly beautiful ships and the hardy men who sailed them made Gloucester an evocation of courage, perseverance, and seamanship unique in America's maritime heritage.

Armed with curiosity and a desire to piece together the story of the world's only seven-masted schooner, Tom Hall spent several years researching on both sides of the Atlantic, diving on the Lawson wreck and interviewing the relatives of those involved in the rescue efforts. The result of his work is the most complete account of the T. W. Lawson's story, ranging from her building and launch to her fated wreck off the Scilly Isles.

Seattle's floating homes community began as a population of unregulated and inexpensive industrial houses in the late 1800s, yet it has evolved to become some of the most sought-after real estate in Seattle today. Little has been shared about this intimate and unique community that is characterized by eclectic architecture, diverse individuals, and a strong sense of community. It is hard to imagine Seattle without its floating homes, but there was a period of time when the community was considered undesirable and was almost driven from the city shores. This book explores the community history of floating homes in Seattle, tales from life on the dock, and the ongoing challenges of being a fringe neighborhood in the urban context of the city.

Those fortunate enough to live on Roanoke Island have always depended on boats. In exploration-era sketches, Native American Algonquins were depicted in their dugout canoes. English settlers took the native concept a step further, developing kunners and, later, periaugers. Sloops and schooners made it possible to trade with far-off lands. Shad boats allowed fishermen to catch enough fresh product to ship to northern markets. Shrimp boats, crab boats, and trawlers brought about a new level of financial independence. Charter boats went past the limits of sound waters to the deep sea, carrying sport fishermen who were ready to pay for the chance to land a Gulf Stream trophy. Today's luxury yachts would boggle the minds of 20th-century backyard boatbuilders. Whether the need for a boat was transportation, subsistence fishing, making a living, or recreation, boatbuilding became a skill many residents picked up out of necessity. This skill matured into a trait that many believe runs deep in the genetic makeup of the local population.

With fortunes that have ebbed and flowed with the tides, Annapolis has graced the banks of the Severn River and the Chesapeake Bay since the seventeenth century. Generations have worked the docks, sailed its waters and hunted for Chesapeake Gold--oysters--even as the city became home to a proud military tradition in the United States Naval Academy. Local author Rosemary F. Williams presents a vivid image of Annapolis with tales of violent skirmishes between the dashing Captain Waddell and crews of outlaw oyster poachers, the crabbing rage of the twentieth century, feisty shipwright Benjamin Sallier and the city's Golden Age of Sailing. Williams's fluid prose and stunning vintage images chronicle the maritime history of this capital city and reveal its residents' deep connection to the ever-shifting waters.

By car or by boat there is no better vacation than a trip around Lake Erie. With Lake Erie Ports and Boats in Vintage Postcards, you can take that trip without ever leaving home, or use this postcard history as companion guide while experiencing the wonders or this Great Lake.

From Buffalo to Port Colborne, and visiting ports in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, and the Province of Ontario, author Sally Sue Witten takes the reader on a visual journey around Lake Erie. Early 20th-century history of the region is told using over 200 vintage postcards from the author's collection. Through the pages the reader will visit grand old steamers with overnight accommodations and smaller excursion boats that took vacationers to many lake resorts. Dock scenes showcase technological changes in loading and unloading equipment that enabled freighters to grow in size and capacity. Port scenes also include lighthouses and U.S. Life Saving Stations.

At the turn of the 20th century, Long Island's North Shore, the so-called Gold Coast, was becoming the most desirable residential area in the United States.

Estates belonging to American captains of finance and industry lined the bluffs and bays from the city line to Eaton's Neck. Some of the nation's most renowned families--including the Astors, Bakers, Huttons, Morgans, Pratts, Sloans, Roosevelts, Whitneys, and Vanderbilts--used their yachts for racing, cruising, commuting, or epic voyages. These vessels regularly plied the waters of the North Shore and bolstered the development of yacht clubs like the New York and Seawanhaka Corinthian--city institutions that established stations at Glen Cove and Centre Island, respectively. These clubs served to provide many outlets for the social gatherings that accompanied this pastime. Although the Great Depression and then World War II would bring the era of the great yachts to an end, a wealth of images remain that can be marveled at a century later.

When three friends gathered at Baxter's Boathouse in 1972 to discuss their Memorial Day weekend plans over a few beers, none of them would have suspected that they were on the verge of creating one of the prestigious sailing events on the Atlantic coast. The Figawi Race began as a challenge among a group of sailing enthusiasts who wanted to see who could race their boat to Nantucket first. After the first race, in which Bob "Red" Luby beat out brothers Bob and Joe Horan, it was decided by Bob Horan that it should become an annual event. In 1973, there were 15 boats, and the Figawi Race was off and running. The race evolved into a three-day event complete with a New England clambake. Figawi Race: Hyannis to Nantucket shares photographs and stories of a race that for over 40 years has continued to bring friends and sailors together.

Chatham Sea Captains in the Age of Sail chronicles the lives and adventures of twenty-five men who traveled the seas from the eighteenth through the twentieth century. These were extraordinary men--masters of navigation who charted paths from the Cape to the Far East with their regal clipper ships; deep-sea fishermen whose fearless spirit drove them to the Grand Banks and Newfoundland in the quest for their catch; and coastal captains who skirted America's eastern seaboard in pursuit of trade. Spurred on by the Industrial Revolution's demands, these mariners continued their pelagic exploration while pirates, privateers and Confederate raiders tested their mettle. The sea was both foe and ally. To meet the foe was the challenge; to sail her waters and return home as true masters was the force that drove these men to excellence.

Boats and Boating on Cranberry Lake portrays the evolution of boating life on a lake that was barely known until the late 19th century. Illustrated here are some of the lake's earliest guide boats and canoes, workboats and steamers, and early motor launches that brought visitors from the dock at Wanakena to hotels around the lake. In the summer of 1909, a few men who regularly spent the season on Cranberry Lake organized a motorboat club to promote the sport of power boating, improve boating conditions on the lake, and have some fun. Today the Cranberry Lake Boat Club, with 400 memberships, is thought to be the oldest such continuously active club in the western Adirondacks. The club will celebrate its centennial in 2009 with a summer of activities related to boats and boating on the lake.