Boatbuilding Books

The Restoration of the Smack Emma C. Berry at Mystic Seaport

by Willits D. Ansel
(1969-1971)(1973), 8”x 9”, 100 pages, 107 illustrations, 3 foldout plans, glossary, bibliography.
A study of ship restoration done to the 1866 fishing smack Emma C. Berry, including a short history of the vessel.
ISBN- 0-913372-08-0 (paper)

The Whaleboat: A Study of Design, Construction and Use from 1850-2014

by Willits D. Ansel with Walter Ansel and Evelyn Ansel
8”x 9”, VI plus 147 pages, 152 illustrations, 3 foldout plans, glossary, bibliography and index.
This updated edition of The Whaleboat contains several additional illustrations and a new set of plans. This thorough study of whaleboats, prepared in the process of constructing them at Mystic Seaport, includes historical accounts, details of construction, analysis of performance, and comparisons of existing whaleboats.
ISBN- 0-913372-40-4 (paper). Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

Atlantic Four-Master: The Story of the Schooner Herbert L. Rawling 1919-1947

by Capt. Francis E. Bowker
8”x 9”, 96 pages, 60 illustrations, 3 foldout plans.
Captain Bowker twice sailed in this four-masted schooner before World War II. With special emphasis on his own voyages aboard her, he describes the vessel’s career during the last days of sail, from her launch in 1919 to her loss in 1947. His engaging style will make this a classic tale of the sea.
ISBN-0-913372-41-2 (cloth) ISBN-0-913372-42-0 (paper)

The Charles W. Morgan

by John F. Leavitt
(1998) 8" x 9" Soft bound.
Out of print for several years, Mystic Seaport's illustrated history of its most significant vessel has been revised and redesigned. This new edition augments John F. Leavitt's text and illustrations with more than 80 photos, most of which document the Morgan's crew at work on the whaling grounds, along with 20 drawings, 10 of them studies of the vessel's structural details by Kathy Bray. There are also five pullout plans bound into the book for reference by modelmakers. Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

The Charles W. Morgan, A Picture History of an American Icon

(2014) Mystic Seaport, in collaboration with The Day newspaper, presents a hardcover, coffee-table book chronicling the history of the Charles W. Morgan, America’s last surviving whaleship of the fleet that numbered more than 2,700. Built and launched in 1841, the Morgan is now America’s oldest commercial ship still afloat. The book captures her amazing journey through an 80-year whaling career, seven decades as a museum exhibit, her recent restoration, and her historic 38th Voyage in 2014. Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

The Three-Masted Schooner James Miller: A History and Model Maker's Source Book

by William S. Quincy
8”x 9”, 48 pages, 27 illustrations, 3 foldout plans.
The Museums model maker prepared this handsome monograph while modeling the Miller, a schooner built at Essex, Connecticut, in 1854. A history of the vessel, a transcription of a shipbuilder’s detailed description of the vessel, and notes on the model are all included.
ISBN-0-913372-37-4 (paper). Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

Building the Herreshoff Dinghy: The Manufacturers Method

by Barry Thomas
9”x 6”, VI plus 50 pages, 47 photographs and drawings and 4 foldout plans.
A step-by-step account of the application of a Herreshoff Manufacturing Company employee's experience to the construction of a replica Herreshoff dinghy at Mystic Seaport, this is a "how to" book and an appreciation of boatbuilding skills.
ISBN-0-913372-33-1 (paper)

The Low Black Schooner: Yacht America

by John Rousmaniere
1851-1945, 11”x 8.5”, VI plus 71 pages, 63 illustrations, 3 foldout plans.
A new history of the yacht America. Lavishly illustrated, based on an exhibit held at Mystic Seaport and the New York Yacht Club. Noted yacht historian John Rousmaniere surveys America’s long and colorful career.
ISBN-0-939510-04-9 (paper)

The Dory Book

by John Gardner
11”x 8.5”, XI plus 275 pages, 153 illustrations, 22 plan sets and index.
The most comprehensive book about dories ever published, this is at once a history of the dory, a practical handbook on dory building, and a compendium of dory designs with full construction details.
ISBN- 0-913372-44-7 (paper). Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

Boat Plans At Mystic Seaport

by Anne and Maynard Bray
2000, 9" x 12", 207 pages, 463 illustrations.
Mystic Seaport's Ships Plans collection includes tens of thousands of drawings representing everything from dinghies to lighthouses. This book describes and illustrates an important part of that collection—boat, yacht, and working-vessels plans from W. Starling Burgess, L. Francis Herreshoff, Winthrop Warner, Frederick Geiger, Louis Kromholz, and Albert Condon, as well as many of Mystic Seaport's own watercraft. There are 128 designs in all , from an 11'6" frostbite dinghy to a 159' coasting schooner, each accompanied by Maynard Bray's astute commentary on the design, the work of the designer, and the context of the boat.
ISBN 0-913372-86-2 (paper)

Building A Greenland Kayak

by Mark Starr
2002, 11"x 8- l/2", XVI plus120 pages, 130 illustrations, 5 plans, appendix and bibliography.
Building a Greenland Kayak takes readers step-by-step through the construction process developed by the author and Mystic Seaport boat builders to teach their popular kayak-building classes at the Museum. The design is derived directly from surviving Greenland craft, five of which are featured in the appendix. The construction techniques are adapted for the use of simple hand tools, the wooden frame is lashed together, and the boat is covered with a "skin" of nylon and sealed with urethane. The book is fully illustrated with diagrams and photographs of construction details. Additional chapters describe how to make a Greenland-style paddle and how to outfit the boat, and the appendix lists sources for materials.
ISB N 0-913372-96-X (paper)

Building The Crosby Catboat

by Barry Thomas
1989, 6"x 9", 60 pages, 54 illustrations, 7 fold out plans and appendices.
In 1986-87, boat builder Barry Thomas and his crew at Mystic Seaport constructed a 20-foot catboat after rediscovering the methods used in the famous Crosby boat shops on Cape Cod, ca. 1880-1935. In this construction guide the author documents the unique Crosby building methods and discusses the importance of preserving and using appropriate technologies from the past.
ISBN 0-913372-48-X (paper)

Classic Small Craft You Can Build

by John Gardner
1993, 8.5"x 11", 194 pages, 37illustrations, 66 plans and index.
A renowned historian of boat design and technology, the late John Gardner was at the same time a progressive designer and builder who did not hesitate to recommend modern materials, such as plywood and epoxy, where they can be used to advantage. The 16 designs he selected for this book emphasize skiffs-flat-bottom, transom-stern craft for many purposes-but also include the ancient Gaspe Flat, the Maine Reach Boat, two peapods, three handsome dory varieties, and an early power dory. He also explains how to balance the rig of a small sailboat, considers the suit­ ability of strip planking for the home boat builder, and introduces readers to such classic designs as the Amesbury skiff. Classic Small Craft You Can Build includes all the design information needed for laying out and building these boats. Each chapter contains a complete set of plans, printed large enough to be read easily. Building procedures are explained step-by-step, making the process easy to follow for novice and expert alike.
ISBN 0-913372-66-8 (paper)

87 Boat Designs

by Ben Fuller
8 "x 11", 96 pages, sample plans, paperback binding
Mystic Seaport Curator Ben Fuller has selected and annotated 87 boat plans from the Museum's collection, plus plans for oars and rigging, with the amateur builder in mind. He offers a brief background on each boat, notes their strengths and weaknesses, and offers construction tips or suggestions for using the plans to help the reader select the right boat. The boats range from simple skiffs through handsome Whitehalls and sleek canoes, to a 20-foot catboat. Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

Mystic Seaport Boatshop Lofting Manual

(1998) 11" x 8 1/2", 79 pages, paperback, comb binding.
Exceptionally clear step-by-step instructions for lofting a small boat's lines accompanied by 25 drawings.
Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »

The Sloops of the Hudson River: A Historical and Design Survey

by Paul E. Fontenoy
9" x 8", 130 pages, 58 illustrations, 16 foldout plans, appendices, glossary, bibliography and index. Paperback binding.
For more of than 200 years, sloop-rigged sailing craft carried the bulk of the commerce on the Hudson River, helping to make New York America's premier seaport. Historian and model-maker Fountenoy looks the origins of Hudson River sloops among 17th-century Dutch vessels, then traces the changes through the 18th and early 19th centuries that resulted in the classic Hudson River sloop of the 1830s-50s.He also considers the revival of the type with the 1969 sloop Clearwater. Making full use of visual documentation, as well as narrative accounts and business records, he has produced the definitive work on this well-known American vessel type. This mix of plans, illustrations, and analysis make this a book for historians, modelmakers, and Hudson River enthusiasts alike. Available from the Mystic Seaport Web Store »