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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

A Plea from the Plimoth Plantation Museum

Mayflower II in drydock in Fairhaven, Massachusetts


(as seen on the Plimoth Plantation Facebook Page, posted 24 April 2013)

Wood you please help us?

Got a spare White Oak tree you'd like to make history with?

Plimoth Plantation needs it to repair Mayflower II! 

Snap a photo and share it to our Facebook wall and help us keep history afloat!

Captain Peter Arenstam, from the Mayflower II, shows a section of white oak
being used to make planking for repairs on the side of the ship

The Mayflower II is in drydock, and she needs some very, very large white oak trees.  The search is currently on for trees about two to three feet in diameter and 10 to 20 feet long to make beams and planking for the Mayflower II.  Every winter she is inspected by the Coast Guard, but this year they peeked under her copper sheathing and found extensive rot.  Lots of rot- and damage done over time due to weather, age and the natural aging of her wooden structure.

Captain Peter Arenstam at the marine workshop at Plimoth Plantation
shows a rotten piece of the Mayflower II removed during repair work this winter

A close up view of the side of Mayflower II
where planking is being replaced with new white oak

The plan is to have the beloved Mayflower II shipshape and back at her berth in Plymouth Harbor by sometime this May.  In the meantime, the loss of the ship means an empty harbor and loss of revenue not only for Plimoth Plantation, who manages the Mayflower II, but also for local businesses, hotels and restaurants.  Vacations and field trips are being cancelled since the tourists won’t be able to see Mayflower II.  The sooner she is back in port, the better!


Plimoth Plantation www.plimoth.org

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Copyright 2013 Heather Wilkinson Rojo

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