View from the New England Aquarium of the Liberty Star moored at the Central Wharf, Boston
Originally christened the Rachel B. Jackson, the Liberty Star was commissioned in 1972 in Harrington, Maine as a private sailing yacht. Over the course of the following ten years, she had three owners, each of whom completed a portion of her construction. In 1982, a Maine shipwright named George Emery purchased the hull and completed the vessel. He named her in honor of his grandmother, who had lent him the money to purchase and complete the schooner. Built as a working replica of an 1890s coastal schooner, her sturdy mahogany planking, oak frames, traditional pine and fir decking, shining brass fittings, and exotic wood cabinetry recall the workmanship of days gone by. She was originally put into service as a training vessel at Mystic Seaport in Mystic, CT. In the mid 1980s, the Seaport sold the vessel to a family who outfitted her and spent three years sailing around the world. Upon the completion of her circumnavigational voyage, she was sold to another family in Maine who took guests on day sails and also showed her at tall ship events. In 2000 she represented the state of Maine in the Tall Ships 2000 race from Bermuda to Boston, and then on to Halifax, Nova Scotia. At one point, the ship was chartered by the National Geographic Society to do whale research off the coast of the Dominican Republic. In the spring of 2012, the Liberty Fleet of Tall Ships found the Rachel B. Jackson “well-used” in Belfast, Maine and decided to save the ship. On April 2, 2012 Liberty Fleet purchased the vessel and spent the next four months and 6,000 man hours rebuilding the ship. Restoration work was extensive, and included new decking, a new main-mast, replacement of the engine, drive shaft, and propellers, new electronic and navigation equipment, and new sails. Her interiors were also refit to include three cozy cabins for overnight accommodations. Liberty Fleet would like to especially thank master shipwrights Mike Rogers, Geno Scalzo, and Andros Kypragoras for thei
Size: 3744px × 5616px
Location: Central Wharf, Boston, Massachusetts
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1890s, 67-foot, boston, central, coastal, decking, fir, fleet, frames, harbour, hull, liberty, long, mahogany, modern, moored, oak, passenger, pine, planking, replica, schooner, ship, star, steel, tall, tours, traditional, vessel, wharf, working
