Word: leavitt
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...John F, Leavitt, red and white, constructed from the oak and pine of the Maine forest, is the fulfillment of Ackerman's dream, but he resents that description. The very word suggests impracticality, something Ackerman wants no part of. "Would it seem like a dream to you if you bought a new truck?" he asks. Is he the forerunner, the leader in something new, something that could become a trend? "Nah," he sneers in a New Hampshire twang. "If a lot more schooners are built, it will be because a lot of people independently came by the same conclusion...
...John F. Leavitt is named after a maritime writer whose book Wake of the Coasters first inspired Ackerman's notion that the era of the wooden sailing ship might again be at hand. Ackerman gave up the pursuit of a doctorate in Middle English, Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman French at the University of Pennsylvania to build his ship. There is enough romance in the hard-nosed seaman that he sought out John Leavitt's widow, Virginia, and invited her to break the obligatory bottle of champagne over the ship's prow at the christening...
...pride began to creep into his voice: "I'm personally responsible for every penny in this schooner. I've put everything I own into her. It's quite an investment. I've got to get it back." How much? "That's my secret." The Leavitt will use cotton sails, partly because they are cheaper, partly because they wear longer on a working ship. A set will probably cost $15,000. Her hull and spars must have cost more than $350,000. The total outlay had to be considerable. But, snaps Ackerman, "whatever it is, there...
...small crew, two professional deck hands, a cook and one or two apprentices, plus himself as captain. She has no engine, but will carry a 15-ft. boat with a diesel that can serve to nose her up to a dock or through a narrow channel. Because of the Leavitt's shallow draft (6½ ft.), she has a big advantage in direct loading and unloading of cargo that originates near the water. Ackerman's first load will be 150 tons of lumber and building materials being shipped from Quincy, Mass., to Haiti by Builder William Duane. Because...
...been in the business for 29 years, is also optimistic. Said he: "I'd like to see more of the same kind of boats. Maybe then the Arabs would drown in their own oil." Not likely. But one thing is certain: when Ned Ackerman takes the Leavitt on her maiden voyage, whether they sail north or south, skipper and ship will be moving in the right direction.-Hays Gorey