If you’ve stopped by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum’s Shipyard lately, you’ve seen a flurry of action up on the deck of 1920 Chesapeake Bay buyboat Winnie Estelle as the historic vessel’s new bulwarks take shape.

In our latest video update, Seip Family Foundation Shipwright Apprentice Caden Lewis and Philip E. & Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation Shipwright Apprentice Austin Benshoff share their work on the log rails and bulwarks, what it means to be a part of the project, and what they’ve learned along the way.

We’re proud to highlight this terrific example of our mission in action. Our Shipwright Apprentice Program is generously sponsored by M&T Bank and made possible through the generosity of our donors, including the Philip E. & Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation, Rita and Bill Reaves, and the Seip Family Foundation, whose major gifts underwrite the cost of a full apprenticeship.

You can support the Shipwright Apprentice Program with a gift to CBMM’s Annual Fund. Your donations help ensure that these traditional skills continue to be developed and shared with the next generation in our Shipyard, preserving a tangible connection to the Chesapeake’s rich boatbuilding heritage. Give today!

As Winnie Estelle‘s multi-year refit reaches its home stretch, you’re invited to learn much more with Vessel Conservation Manager Sam Hilgartner at the next edition of Coffee & Wood Chips this Friday, March 6, at 10am. This in-person program is free for CBMM members and $10 for non-members. Register here!