Second Lives 25

I took the photo below in spring 2012 on the event of 343‘s arrival in the sixth boro.  It shows (from far to near) FDNY’s John D. McKean, Kevin C. Kane, and Firefighter.  None of these vessels is currently owned by FDNY.  McKean has gone upriver to be converted into a museum, Kane has gone to Wisconsin to become a workboat, and  so far as I know, our whole upriver alliance of traffic watchers–myself included– missed her passage to Troy and then the Erie Canal, even though I traveled on the Erie twice this past November. Did anyone catch photos of Kane and not post them, I wonder?

Firefighter has gone to Greenport on the North Fork to live on as a museum.

The next four photos were taken by Fireboat Firefighter Museum volunteers.

I saw Firefighter in Greenport on December 31, 2016, but as of today, she’s at Goodison’s Shipyard in Rhode Island,

where haul out and

hull inspection and repair and

 repainting. This work was made possible by grants from the National Parks Service National Maritime Heritage program, as well as the NY State Office of Historic Preservation, and our supporters and benefactors who provided matching donations to allow us to access the grant funds. We’re still taking donations for shipyard work through our donation page on our website, and presently have a benefactor willing to provide a 100% match on any donations up to $50K received for additional yard work.

According to Mike Hibbard, VP and vessel historian at Fireboat Fire Fighter Museum, Firefighter will emerge from the shipyard “no longer be sporting the red coat of paint applied to the FDNY fleet in the 1960’s. We’re taking her back to her 1938 appearance – which means she’ll have a black hull, white topside house, black decks and a buff stack. All the monitors, bitts and nameboards will also be returned to their original polished brass appearance.”

Click here for photos I took of Firefighter in the KVK, when she still worked for FDNY.  The next three photos come from the Goodison Shipyard FB page.

 

 

Many thanks to Mike Hibbard for contacting me about this story.

For one of many posts featuring another retired FDNY vessel, John J. Harvey, click here.

More Greenport

Click here for tugster posts related for the town on the North Fork, which get lots of attention in about a month.  My most recent posts were here and here. My advice is to gallivant at least twice, and once before the flotilla arrives.

Take this harbor tour to get oriented.

Elco launch Glory

Captain Dave is a great tour guide as

he takes you quietly around the old shipyard at Greenport Basin.    I heard rumors that Commander may be heading back west this summer.  Anyone know?

Greenport feels almost like a downeast New England town.  I’m told this vessel is part of  modern oyster farming project.  Eat something raw.

See truly beautiful boats, some newly restored.

China Clipper

Catch some fish.

Read about a veteran,

this one.

built on City Island in the Bronx  in 1937.

Walk to a beach and take a selfie with Resolute.  It was invisible but present, 10 or so miles to the northwest.

Discover research projects to ponder.  More on that black spheroid soon.

Whatzit??!

All photos by Will Van Dorp.

 

 

 

J. R. Nelson ex YG-33

This was the tip-off photo:  in the right light, the raised-metal lettering is clear.  I received this photo from I.Y. last September, but never got more of the hull going abaft the US.

This one doesn’t show the lettering.

Nor does this.

So this past weekend, when I was in Greenport, I headed straight down to the water–aboard Glory, which I’ll talk more about tomorrow–and

bow of ex-YG-33 later J. R. Nelson

although the light didn’t bring out more detail, the captain did.  It turns out that YGs were garbage lighters, and this one had a memorable engine, although I don’t know if it’s rusty remains are still submerged.  This YG was turned into a fish

processing vessel that sank at the dock and became the focus of a lawsuit.

Thanks to Ingrid Young for putting me on this search and sending the top three photos.  The last three photos I took from launch Glory.

Old (and Less So) Wood 2

I took this foto in August 2010, here with my back to Anthony’s Nose.  Any guesses about the vintage of this chubby people mover?

Here’s a foto I took yesterday in Greenport of

this Morehead, NC veteran of WW1!!!

At the same locstion, I took this foto.  Anyone know what manufacturer this beauty is, frontal and

stern view.

And from inside the post-Sandy rebuilt Scrimshaw restaurant, I’d love to know what vessel

this figurehead once graced.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.

Small Craft 5

Here was 4.

I’ve always found that parts of New York remind me of New England.  Which parts you might wonder?

Try . . . the North Fork  . . . Greenport, NY, where many vessels were built during most of the first half of the 20th century.  I don’t know the story of this very lobsterboat type vessel . . .  other than that it could convince me to check if the Department of Health is hiring.  Check these boats from Cape Ann, Ma and parts downeast.

This blue skiff, appearing to float on a wave of nets and floats, reminds me of vessels built along coastal NJ.  Check here for a 30′ Baykeeper vessel, built in Keyport, NJ.

I love this blue skiff.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.

Greenport Festival 2

After the parade, a race happens.  If this blog did audio and “sensearound,” you’d hear the roar and feel the splash and pitch. You’d need towels for your desk and a cloth to clean your glasses. For now, read the fotos and imagine the sound. Cover your keyboard lest the spray damage it though. Picture the photographer, back braced against the deckhouse, one foot against the inside of each toerail, as the sweet official boat BTU rocks. I’ll try to put up a foto of BTU and pushing matches tomorrow.

A stealthy tugboat Dragon churns forward,

Cornell builds momentum,

Illusion dashes towards the breakwater,

and Patrician Ann cuts us close, but lags far behind Redfish almost invisible off slightly to port.

All photos, Will Van Dorp.