John Morgan is president of the Beaufort County
Mental Health Association which was organized in the early 1960's as an advocacy
mental health program for the citizens of this area. The mission of this
agency is to promote mental health awareness, provide mental health education,
and improve the care and treatment of the mentally ill. Its primary focus
is on educational advocacy in behalf of the mentally ill in the community,
while trying to eliminate the stigma that surrounds mental illness.
If you would like to make a contribution to this
organization, you can do so by purchasing John's new book,
A Pleasant Gale on My Lee. All proceeds
from the sale of the book (above the cost of publishing) will go directly
into the Beaufort County Mental Health Association's Endowment Fund.
You can use the secure, encrypted credit card facility of our website
to purchase the book by
clicking here
.
Captain Irv
Stowe was captain of the “Ethel” in the early 1930's, and between trips to
Elizabeth City he constructed his sturdy 40-foot fishing boat, the “Bonnie
Belle”. He had an earlier craft by the same name – a surplus Coast Guard
surf boat in which he had rigged a six-cylinder Studebaker engine, which
served him well while fishing the Pamlico Sound and offshore in the Atlantic
in the late 20's and early 30's.
Cap’n Irv was
my grandfather on my mother’s side of the family, and was a master carpenter
and boat builder. Grandpop had some of the children gathered around
one day while he was working on his boat in the back yard, and told us about
the time a “fruiter” ran aground in Hatteras Inlet in 1929. This was
cause for a huge salvage operation, and Hatterasmen and Ocracockers came
from all points to salvage the bananas on the grounded vessel.
Grandpop said he
loaded his surf boat with bananas and came to Washington to sell them.
He got $1.00 per stalk, or one penny per banana as he sold them from his berth
located at Fowle’s Dock at the foot of Respess Street.
At this time my
family rented an apartment upstairs over Johnson’s Printing House, located
across Respess Street near First National Bank (today’s Bank of America).
Grandpop brought us a stalk of the green bananas and hung them in the hallway
to ripen. I remember not being able to wait for them to ripen and got
a terrific belly ache from eating green bananas!
Grandpop liked
to tell the yarn about the Hatterasman that came to Washington on his first
trip away from the Outer Banks and bought his first banana. When asked
how he liked it, the Hatterasman replied, “Well, h’it was alright, but I
shore did hate to have to throw away that big core!”
Being the master carpenter and builder he was, Grandpop never
had to rely on blueprints or templates in the construction of “Bonnie Belle”.
He just drew a profile of the shape he wanted, laid the keel, and proceeded
from there. “Bonnie Belle” was what was termed in those days
as a “huntin’ cabin” style of construction. He had helped Calvin Burrus
build a similar model.
Grandpop had access
to top quality juniper and cypress lumber from one of the mills at Elizabeth
City, and on each trip up to the Pasquotank Port city he’d pick out choice
pieces. Cedar trees grew near the house, and from some of these he
fashioned the “knees” for the framing, while cypress completed the side and
bottom timbers. Affixed to this sturdy framework were the smoothly-planed
juniper planks. Cedar, cypress and juniper were used in wooden boat
construction because they have a long-lasting quality and repel worms and
other marine infestations. Copper nails and brass screws were used
to fasten all this together, while all insets were filled with beeswax putty.
We young’uns were kept busy sharpening planes, hatchets and other cutting
tools on the grindstone. One would turn the crank and keep water poured
on the stone while the other would hold the instrument to be honed.
Shavings and scrap wood were kept in a separate pile to be used on wash days
to keep the fire under the pot in which the clothes were boiled.
With a majestic
flared bow and a curved stern, she was a beauty to behold as she took shape
over the months of the summer and fall of 1933 and on into 1934 when at last
the big day came for the launching. Water myrtles and live oaks had
to be negotiated between the construction site and the landing at soundside,
a distance of about 200 feet.
Grandpop rounded
up family members and other able-bodied men to help. She was gently
lowered on jacks from the scaffolding surrounding her to roller, and the laborious
journey from back yard to shoreside began. All the men got along side
and behind to push, while other steadied her with poles holding up each side.
Good planning soon had her in the water and on her way out to the stake to
which she would be tethered.
The bottom and
side boards of select lumber were planed to perfection so that caulking was
not required. The salt water caused the boards to swell together in
a perfect fit so that in two or three days a leak could not be detected.
She was tied to a stake about 300 feet from shoreside. A 12-foot skiff tied
closer to shore in knee-deep water was used to get out to the larger boat.
Then came the
task of installing a newer model Studebaker engine, finishing off the cabin
and superstructure, and finally the “shakedown” cruise to Hatteras Inlet
Coast Guard station and return —and she performed flawlessly. She was
rigged for fishing in the sound and ocean. During World War II Grandpop
worked in the shipyard at Manteo where sub chasers were built, and his boat
served as his home during that time.