Hello Everyone,

The Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic is heavily involved with the Toronto Nautical Festival, running this weekend (Friday, 20 June to Sunday). In addition to a fine display booth highlighting both the Museum and the town of Lunenburg, our boat builder is constructing a Lunenburg dory at the Festival.

The Province of Nova Scotia has also sent Lunenburg's fine ambassador, Bluenose II, to be the flagship of the event. The Province issued the following press release:

Nova Scotia's sailing ambassador, the world famous schoonerBluenose II, is sailing into Toronto, bringing with it the sights and sounds of Canada's seacoast province. The visit is part of the 2008 Nautical Festival at the Toronto Harbourfront Thursday, June 19 to Sunday, June 22. "We are thrilled to have Bluenose II at the Toronto Nautical Festival," said Bill Dooks, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "While she was born in Nova Scotia, Bluenose II is a symbol of endurance and achievement for all Canadians and remains a wonderful ambassador for our province."

The event will feature a Nova Scotian pavilion, including a wide range of industry professionals demonstrating new products, sharing experiences and offering samples from Canada's seacoast province. It will also give the public an opportunity to stroll the deck of Bluenose II.

Popular entertainers, such as the Barra MacNeils, will perform at the festival, immersing Toronto residents in Nova Scotia's rich and lively music. Information about Nova Scotia as a travel destination will be featured at the Nautical Festival. Included will be an outline of air travel options available to those interested in visiting Nova Scotia from Toronto's Pearson International and City Centre airports.

The original Bluenose was launched from a shipyard in Lunenburg on March 26, 1921. Because of wins in the races of Grand Banks schooners between Canada and the U.S., the Bluenose became known as Queen of the North Atlantic. In 1963, the ship's replica, Bluenose II, was launched from the same shipyard, also built by many of the same men who worked on the original Bluenose.

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If you're in Toronto this weekend, drop in an visit with our staff from the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic!

Wishing you Smooth Sailing,

Heather

The Courage To Do The Impossible ...

Marlon Brando in "Mutiny on the Bounty". Russell Crowe in "Master and Commander". Captain Angus Walters aboard the famous Bluenose.

What do these three men have in common? The connection is found through their vessels; the replicas of the HMS Bounty and the HMS Rose (later HMS Surprise) and the original Bluenose were all built at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, in Lunenburg Nova Scotia.

The replica of HMS Bounty was launched in 1960, to the cheers of thousands of Lunenburgers and visitors to the community. It sparked the movement to build a replica of our own Bluenose, and in 1963, Bluenose II slid down the ways at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard.

In 1970, the replica of HMS Rose was constructed at the same Yard. Marine history buffs were delighted to see another part of nautical history come to life under the skilled hands of Lunenburg craftsmen. In 2003, HMS Rose was immortalized in the release of "Master and Commander", as the vessel HMS Surprise. In honour of that role, the name of the ship was officially changed to HMS Surprise.

The Smith and Rhuland Shipyard was one of the best-known shipyards in Nova Scotia. Located on the Lunenburg waterfront, the Yard produced more than one hundred fine ships. The Shipyard was the creation of Richard Smith and George Rhuland and was established in 1900. In their first year, they built two vessels: Palatia and Quisetta.

From 1900 until the mid-1970s, many vessel designs went from half-models to full-sized craft. Fishing vessels, like the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic’s Theresa E. Connor were built there, as were larger "ocean-going" ships. Vessels that were used for pleasure craft and in serious work went hand-in-glove with other, adventurous ships ~ like rum runners!

The mainstay of the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, though, remained in the fishery. The fine vessels, the shipwrights that crafted them and the men who sailed them can all be brought together under the same tagline used in the movie "Master and Commander": The Courage To Do The Impossible Lies in the Hearts of Men.

For every fisherman who has gone to sea and for their brave families on shore, the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic celebrates their dreams and honours their sacrifices.

Wishing you Smooth Sailing,
Heather

Bluenose II

Hello Everyone,

When I look out my office window, at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, part of my immediate view is of the ratlines of the schooner Bluenose II. A closer look reveals the masts and deck of this famous sailing ambassador of Nova Scotia.

Bluenose II is owned by the Province of Nova Scotia and is operated by the Board of Directors of the Lunenburg Marine Museum Society. This same organization operates the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic for the Nova Scotia Museum.

Bluenose II is history renewed, revitalized and alive. Built at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, here in Lunenburg, in 1963, Bluenose II is a tribute to the original Bluenose, built at the same Yard in 1921.

The original vessel won international acclaim as the undefeated champion of the North Atlantic. Bluenose raced against the best of the American fishing schooners, in the International Fishermen’s Series, from 1921 to the last race in 1938, winning each Series. The schooner was a fishing vessel, a racer and an ambassador, travelling as far as England during the King’s Jubilee in 1935.

Bluenose II has made her own splash in history and continues to bring the experience of going to sea alive for both crew and visitors. Each year, Bluenose II travels to a variety of ports and welcomes thousands of visitors aboard. Short cruises are available, when weather permits.
Nothing compares to the sound of the sails filled with a breeze, on the great Atlantic, or even in the waters of the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes.

In 2008, the ports of call include Gaspé, Montréal, Toronto, Quebec City, Gloucester and, for the first time, Sainte-Pierre.

The website for Bluenose II contains up-to-date information about the comings and goings of the schooner. http://museum.gov.ns.ca/bluenose/index.htm

Wishing you Smooth Sailing,
Heather