DCR has announced that the Park Serve Day scheduled for Saturday April 20 has been POSTPONED.  the Work Day has been RESCHEDULED for next Saturday, April 28.  Contact us if you have any questions.

RESCHEDULED for Saturday April 27.

It’s time to get Schooner Ernestina ready for the summer season.

Let’s get that winter cover off!

Please sign up on DCR’s Park Serve Page.

Step #1: “Select a park” –  scroll down and select Schooner Ernestina.

then complete steps #2 -#4  and click submit.

You should get a confirmation email.

Please RSVP to SEMA so we will know how much coffee and donuts to get and so we can let you know if you need to bring any special equipment.

Fun from last year:

See you at State Pier, New Bedford at 9 am Saturday, April 27!  We’ll be done by 1:00 pm.

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Jim and Cindy Bean welcomed the Fufu Band to the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park Visitors’ Center.

The Fufu Band marched down to the Auditorium to continue the celebration of Ernestina’s “birthday”.  It’s 119 years since the launch of Effie M. Morrissey in Essex, Massachusetts.

Following a showing of the Pathe Newsreels (who could forget Bob Bartlett’s “Little Morrissey“?), former crew members and friends of Schooner Ernestina had the audience in fits of laughter as they shared their stories and songs of some of the more amusing times on board. Tom Goux started us off with “Yoyo Schooners”. Chuck Smiler continued the fun, with a recitation of the “The Log of the Record Run” while dressed in full fisherman’s gear and drinking from a bottle. Was it muddy water or rum? Fred Sterner and Marty Casey regaled us with their tales, including times on this venerable working boat, while in the company of pristine yachts. A blushing bride remembered with fondness her wedding on board.

Jim Bean had everyone singing when he led his new chantey, “Potty on a Line” to commemorate a voyage when Ernestina sported a large wheel chair accessible port-a-potty on the starboard side, and his watch was assigned to catch it on the dock at low tide.

Louise and Paul Anthony helped everyone make beautiful Sailors’ Valentines with dyed pasta prepared by Cindy Bean.

Everyone joined The Beans in singing “Lovely Ernestina” .  Then everyone finished the celebration with birthday cake served by Annie McDowell.

A big thank you to Emily Prigot and the staff at the New Bedford Whaling Historical Park for all their help.

Keep posted for BIG plans to celebrate Ernestina’s 120th in 2014!

Come celebrate Schooner Ernestina’s 119th birthday on Valentine’s Day and join in the fun,when the AHA! theme for the night is ‘Ha, Ha”.   Kids of all ages will meet at 7:30 P.M. in front of the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park Visitor’s Center to join the fufu band. What fun!

“Musical instruments” will be provided or bring your own. We will march through the Visitor Center to the auditorium.

There will be activities for All!  

Make a Sailor’s Valentine, watch newsreels from when the Effie M. Morrissey went to the Arctic, and enjoy stories and songs about some of the lighter times on board. Sing Happy Birthday to Ernestina and indulge in a piece of birthday cake.

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“Proud to be Cape Verdean (PTBCV): A Look at Cape Verdeans in the Golden State,” a documentary about the Cape Verdean community in California, will screen on Friday, Feb 8 @ 6:15pm at the Corson Maritime Learning Center Theater, 33 William St, New Bedford, Ma. Doors open at 6:00pm.

The event is free to the public. PTBCV captures the essence of the Cape Verdean culture in California through an insightful look at individuals and organizations and their desire to maintain their cultural identity. The music of the Mendes Brothers, John & Ramiro is featured. Actor/Producer Michael Beach lends his voice talents as Narrator.

The writer/producer/director of the film, Mike Costa, has been a professional writer for over 15 years and is a member of the Writer’s Guild of America. His many credits include: Roseanne, The Steve Harvey Show, In the House and The Gregory Hines Show. His interest and experience in documentary film making resulted in collaborative works with other Cape Verdean film makers.

This one-hour documentary offers oral histories in conjunction with interviews, photographs and re-enactments that accurately depict the transition of small family gatherings where Cape Verdeans shared their love of their cuisine and music grew, inspired and eventually shaped the formation of non-profit Cape Verdean organizations dedicated to sustaining the legacy of their racially and linguistically rich culture while maintaining a strong connection to their East Coast ties and their home country of Cape Verde. Experts such as Gina Sanchez-Gibau, PhD, Associate Dean of Student Affairs at Indiana University/IUPUI, James Lopes, noted Cape Verdean Genealogist and Cape Verdean Ambassador to the United States, Fatima Veiga are featured.

This has been a collaborative effort of the entire California Cape Verdean community. The film will screen in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Atlanta, Ohio, California and throughout the Cape Verdean Diaspora. The documentary features Portuguese and French subtitles.

The recent Schooner Ernestina Commission meeting included a visit to Ernestina to review the work being done and to examine concerns yet to be addressed.

Manny Silva, Karl Pastore, Commissioners Laura Pires-Hester and Steve Walsh (l-r) examine the progress on repairs to the fish hold hatch.

Supt. Jen Nersesian, Commissioners Brian Rothschild and Fred Sterner, volunteer Chuck Smiler listen as Karl Pastore explains the fish hold hatch cover will be replaced.

Karl Pastore, South Region Director and Bob Mackenzie, South Coast Director explained the work in progress and planned projects.

The ship's wheel condition was discussed.

The Commissioners also visited the Ernestina workshop stocked with new woodworking equipment.

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The Commission and DCR would like to begin a pilot program to allow volunteers to work

Ernestina's wheel will need to be removed for evaluation to determine the extent of deterioration and the reconstruction necessary.

on Ernestina for more than just the two major annual work days that have been held recently.  DCR will identify projects that will involve a small group of volunteers, or perhaps just one person.  For now the volunteer sessions would be held during the week.  If you have specific skills and are interested in volunteering to work on Ernestina please contact us and indicate your skills and availability.  DCR staff will be identifying projects suitable for volunteers to accomplish.  These may be one day projects or longer term tasks.

The program will be evaluated and if it is effective the Commission hopes that more opportunities for volunteers to work on the ship will be made available in the future.

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Fill in the CONTACT form to volunteer.
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During the holiday vacation week the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park hosted Arctic Day to celebrate Arctic connections of their partners The New Bedford Whaling Museum, Iñupiat Heritage Center in Barrow, Alaska, and Schooner Ernestina.  Did you know that Effie M. Morrissey (now Ernestina), sailed by Captain “Bob” Bartlett, spent over 20 years exploring the Arctic, including one voyage through the Panama Canal and up the Pacific Coast to the Bering Sea and western Arctic Ocean?

The Morrissey also served in World War II in Northern waters.

Activities were available all day throughout the Visitors’ Center 33 William St. New Bedford.

Learning about Arctic animals.

Participants learned about some of the people visited by the Morrissey and some of the  animals Captain Bartlett collected to bring back to the United States.

SEMA volunteer Mary Anne McQuillan shows photos of some of the animals carried on the Morrissey from the May 1946 National Geographic Magazine.

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There are more photos on the NMWNHP Facebook page.

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UMass Dartmouth students presented their report to Supt. Jen Nersesian, Commissioner Brian Rothschild and SEMA director Mary Anne McQuillan at a recent Student-Client Reception

The Schooner Ernestina Commission and the Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey Association, Inc. commissioned the University of Massachusetts- Dartmouth Charlton College of Business Center for Marketing Research to conduct a marketing survey this fall.  The document will be used in the planning for Ernestina’s future operations and programming.

We thank Dr. Nora Garmin Barnes,  Director of the Center for Marketing Research, for offering this invaluable service to Ernestina’s future.

We congratulate the students, Michelle Carpenter, Melyssa Centeno, Chelsey Doiron, Stephanie Louzada and Chandler York for their excellent report.

The Commission will commission a second project to be conducted during the Spring semester.  This study will analyze the demand for services that Ernestina could provide.  The students will start with a list of potential programs and events that is generated from looking at (1) past uses of Ernestina, (2) how other ships are being employed (i.e. information from last semester’s market research), and (3) other desired or potential future uses — including educational, friend-raising and revenue-generating uses (as well as combinations thereof), from hour-long dockside programs to multi-day sails.  From this they will research and analyze who the target audiences for these uses might be, how likely that audience would be to use Ernestina, and what they would be willing to pay.  With an understanding of the demand and potential return on the various activities Ernestina might undertake, the Commission, SEMA, DCR and the Ernestina community can then use this information to build a suite of programming that will help ensure a sustainable and dynamic future for a restored, sailing Ernestina.

SEMA will support the Commission again by paying 50% of the Center’s fee.

Tom Lopes documented the Ernestina Forum in 2010 photo credit Frank Pina

Tom Lopes was posthumously honored as The Standard-Times 2012 New Bedford Man of the Year. Tom is most deserving of this honor. We miss his enthusiastic support of Ernestina.  Follow the link to the article.