A list of goals posted at the 19th-century Commercial Street freight shed has but two items concerning construction of a replica of the pinnace Virginia built in Maine in 1607.
At the top, for Dec. 22, is the completion of the small sailing ship’s hull planking and deck framing.
Several spaces below at the bottom, for June 7, 2020: launch day.
“It means the ship will float at that point; it will not be 100 percent ready to sail, but it will be most of the way,” Jeremy Blaiklock, vice president of Maine’s First Ship, said during a July 7 interview at the freight shed. The hull is about 75 percent complete.
The organization operates a visitor center in the Kennebec River shoreline building, behind which between five and 15 volunteers spend Wednesdays and Saturdays bringing a decade-plus-long dream a little closer to reality. Read More
