Clockwise, from top left: The anchor on the Harvey Gamage; Jeff Roberts, a historic interpreter, flips through the research journal he uses to bring the Penobscot River’s maritime heritage to life for visitors aboard the Harvey Gamage during the vessel’s 4-Port Loop tour; An American flag flies from the bowsprit of the the Tall Ship Harvey Gamage at the Bangor Waterfront on Friday; The masts of the Tall Ship Harvey Gamage are seen behind the gangway at the Bangor Waterfront on Friday; The Tall Ship Harvey Gamage docked at the Bangor Waterfront on Friday as part of the Penobscot Maritime Heritage Association’s 4-Port-Loop to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. Credit: Linda Coan O’Kresik / BDN
A historic tall ship made its way to Bangor on Friday.
The 131-foot schooner Harvey Gamage stopped at a number of communities on the Penobscot River over the past week as part of a celebration around Penobscot Bay and the lower river marking the country’s 250th anniversary. It came to shore in Bangor Friday afternoon.
Penobscot Maritime Heritage Association’s 4-Port-Loop to celebrate America’s 250th birthday and the Penobscot River’s maritime heritage. The Harvey Gamage is a 131′ gaff rigged schooner that was launched in 1973 in South Bristol.
It was launched from the South Bristol shipyard of the same name in 1973, the last of five reproduction cargo ships built for tourism in Penobscot Bay, according to its owner, Phin Sprague.
The Gamage traveled over the past week from Bucksport to Castine, a one-way trip open to passengers, before other trips to Stonington, North Haven and then Rockland. High school students will be able to board for an educational voyage Aug. 2 through Aug. 7.
“When you look at this [ship] through the eyes of history, what you should be seeing is that this was the 18-wheeler of its day that was carrying the cargo and the goods up and down the coast,” Sprague said.
BDN Photographer Linda Coan O’Kresik and reporter Elizabeth Walztoni contributed to this report.
