New MD Dove to Arrive in HSMC Aug. 27

(Photo courtesy of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum)

The new Maryland Dove is scheduled to sail into Historic St. Mary’s City between 10:30 and 10:45 am, weather permitting, on August 27.

After the ship’s arrival, there will be an 11:30 am commissioning ceremony at the Margaret Brent pavilion, where the ship’s log will officially be given to the museum by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. The day continues with a ribbon cutting at the Maryland Dove dock, officially welcoming guests aboard. Timed tours of the new vessel will take place from noon to 5 pm. These tours will be registration only.

At 2 pm, naval architect Iver Franzen, CBMM shipyard lead rigger Sam Hilgartner and HSMC captain Will Gates will lead a discussion about the design of the ship. This will take place inside the HSMC visitor center. Visit the museum’s website for ticket links and more information on the day’s activities.

Entrance to the museum and outdoor exhibits (including Maryland Dove) will be free for the event day.

The celebration will continue through the year as the new Maryland Dove will embark on a tour of the Chesapeake Bay, sharing the exhibit with Marylanders at different ports of call.

In 2018, HSMC announced that CBMM had been selected to build a brand-new Maryland Dove for Historic St. Mary’s City. The ship, a representation of the late 17th-century trading ship that accompanied the first English settlers to what is now Maryland, is owned by the state of Maryland, and operated and maintained by the Historic St. Mary’s City Commission.

An earlier version of the ship, built in the 1970s by Cambridge’s Jim Richardson, was nearing the end of its useful life and decades of new research meant that a new ship could be designed to be a more historically accurate representation of the original Maryland Dove.