I = Isaac H. Evans

An  ‘I’ was definitely hard to find and then I discovered the isacc H. Evans.

Isaac H. Evans is another Maine Windjammer, currently serving the tourist trade, similar to the Grace Bailey. This two-masted schooner was built by George Vannaman in 1886 in Mauricetown, New Jersey and was first owned by a consortium.

Vannaman Shipyard in Mauricetown, NJ, circa 1873

She eventually became the sole property of Harrison Sheppard. Originally named the Boyd N. Sheppard, she is the oldest of a small number of surviving oyster schooners. Sheppard worked the oyster beds of Delaware Bay, using her to ship his product to New York City. In 1909 she was sold to the three sons of Isaac H. Evans in 1919, who renamed her after their father .

She continued to work in the oyster trade until 1946, when her masts were removed and a motor installed. Use of this type of ship in the oystering industry declined in the years after World War II, and many of the existing schooners were either scrapped or laid up and left to rot.

Isaac H. Evans was purchased by a couple from Rockland, Maine, and brought from New Jersey to the old Percy and Small Shipyard, which is now part of the Bath Maritime Museum, in 1971. By 1973 she was completely rebuilt to her original sailing configuration and adapted for her new use in the existing Maine windjammer fleet. She was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1992.

Isaac H. Evans has a 99 foot long deck, is 20 feet wide at the beam, and draws only 6 feet when her centerboard is up, 13 when it is down. Her very shallow draft allows the boat to haunt the islands of the coast and visit its small harbors. She has two masts and a gaff rigged topsail, low sides and an elegant clipper bow. A trailing small power boat is used for auxiliary power to maneuver the vessel on and off the dock and when she is becalmed, similar to the Grace Bailey. The schooner’s framing is double-sawn oak and she has oak planking. Her complement of sails includes a mainsail, main topsail, foresail, staysail, and jib, and her hold has been fitted for passenger occupancy.

Isaac H. Evans carries 22 vacationers on one to six-night sailing trips in Penobscot Bay with her sailing grounds ranging from Boothbay Harbor to Bar Harbor. Passengers help with the sails and other tasks, so they get the experience of a trip back in time.