Skipjacks

David T. Turnbaugh's Skipjack Series
Skipjacks are wooden boats designed for oyster dredging in the Chesapeake Bay. By law, skipjacks must work under sail three days a week. With their reliance on winds to reap their harvest, our hearts recall more wholesome days. I'm working on a series of portraits to capture the simple elegance of the last remaining working skipjacks.

Skipjacks

David T. Turnbaugh is earnestly concerned with the plight of the Chesapeake Bay skipjack. In the early eighties, Dave recognized that these once common light, sailed oyster boats were in trouble.

In the early 20th century, there were about 1,000 'jacks working the Bay. Today there are only about 20 skipjacks left. Most are more than eighty years old. In addition, the oysters they depend on are in decline due to disease, pollution and over-harvesting.

Dave is in the process of painting a portrait of each of the remaining skipjacks and publishing a limited edition print of each. Dave believes this project will bring attention to the vanishing skipjack, a true icon of Chesapeake history. In order to raise awareness and financial aid, Dave donated his original work to the Maryland Historical Society and granted the use of the image in their S.O.S. ("Save our Skipjacks") poster.

Chesapeake Bay Skipjacks Series:

Each series is a limited edition of 475 prints

Standard.
Edition

Artist
Proof

Signed/numbered

$140

$170

With Remarque:

– Pencil

350

400

– Color

600

650

Signed by the artist. Printed on the highest quality acid free paper. Image size is approx. 19 1/2 x 29 1/2, unless noted.

More about the Skipjacks:
Saving the Skipjacks - The skipjack, Maryland’s state boat and a beloved symbol of the culture and heritage of the Chesapeake Bay, is disappearing. Because it ... continued

Save Our Skipjacks Task Force - In November 1999, the Maryland Commission for Celebration 2000 formed the Save Our Skipjacks Task Force. The Task Force considered ... continued

Maryland’s Commercial Skipjack Fleet Named Most Endangered - On June 6, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named the nation’s only remaining sail-powered commercial fleet one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. The skipjack, ... continued

The skipjack became the Maryland State Boat in 1985 - Skipjacks are the last working boats under sail in the United States. In winter, fleets ... continued

Saving Oysters . . . And Oystermen - The 20th century was ending well for the oldest oysterman on the Chesapeake, until Art Daniels of Deal Island hauled up something in his dredge he had never seen before in all his years as a skipjack captain. cont'd

Preserving the Historic Vessels - Currently, restoration work for the skipjack fleet is on hold due to the construction on our Marine Railway. The railway is ... continued

Oyster Recovery Partnership - The Oyster Recovery Partnership is a coalition of organizations, institutions, businesses and individuals dedicated to helping restore the health of the Chesapeake Bay by ... continued

Skipjacks - National Landmarks:
Kathryn
Rebecca T. Ruark
Helen Virginia
Hilda M. Willing

Skipjacks of Maryland Historical Trust:
Bernice J
Clarence Crockett
Claude W. Somers
E.C. Collier
Elsworth
F.C. Lewis
Fannie L. Daugherty
Helen Virginia
Hilda M. Willing
Howard
Ida May
Kathryn
Maggie Lee
Mary W. Somers
Minnie V
Nellie L. Byrd
Ralph T. Webster
Rebecca T. Ruark
Reliance
Ruby G. Ford
Sea Gull
Sigsbee
Stanley Norman
Susan May
Thomas W. Clyde
Viginia W.

Sail Aboard a Skipjack:
The E.C. Collier (exhibit only) -
http://www.cbmm.org/wh_exhib_oyst.html

The Dee -
http://www.skipjacktours.com/
The Elsworth -
http://www.ehos.org/workboats.html

The Ada Fears -
http://www.skipjackadafears.com
The H.M. Krentz -
http://www.oystercatcher.com/hmkrentz.html
Maggie Lee (exhibit only) -
http://www.riverheritage.org/Preservation/html/maggie_lee.html

F.C. Lewis Jr. (exhibit only) -
http://www.riverheritage.org/Preservation/html/lewis.html

Skipjack Martha Lewis -
http://www.skipjackmarthalewis.org/

The Minnie V -
http://www.livingclassrooms.org/Facilities/MinnieV.html

Nathan of Dorchester -
http://www.skipjack-nathan.org/

Flora Price (exhibit only) -
http://www.riverheritage.org/Preservation/html/flora_historic_photos.html

Rebecca T. Ruark -
http://www.skipjack.org/
The Sigsbee -
http://www.livingclassrooms.org/Facilities/Sigsbee.html

Claud W. Somers -
http://www.rfmuseum.org/somers.html

Information and links:
Annual Skipjack Races (Labor Day Weekend) -
http://skipjack.net/races/
The idea to bring back the Skipjack Races (Workboat Races) to the Bay ... was the crowds of onlookers and the fun the community had...

Chesapeake Bay Dreaming -
http://www.baydreaming.com/skipjacks.htm
Soon after its introduction to the Chesapeake in the 1890s, the skipjack became the preferred oyster dredge boat. Some have ...

Uncertain Future for Skipjacks? -
www.mdsg.umd.edu/CQ/V02N1/index.html
Call them killer angels. With their long lifting bowsprits, raked wooden masts and sweeping sheer lines, skipjacks not only recall but actually sustain the age of sail as we move into a new century...

Video: Step Aboard the Rebecca T. Ruark
http://yourtrip.travelchannel.com/clip.aspx?
From the Travel Channel (Duration: 00:06:11)

Save Our Skipjacks:

When you purchase a skipjack print from this page, a portion of the proceeds goes to benefit charities devoted to preserving and promoting the legacy of the Chesapeake Skipjacks.

Cold Front Winds
** NEWEST RELEASE **

Morning Breezes

Sunrise Rendezvous at Baltimore Light

Heading Down Bay

Near Sandy Point Light and Bay Bridge

The City of Crisfield

Working the Choptank

Morning Calm

The Elsworth
** SOLD OUT **

Passing Thomas Point Light

The Kathryn
** SOLD OUT **

Please contact Maryland Realist Ltd.
We prefer the old-fashioned telephone: (410) 243-7027
Snail-mail: 1833 Deveron Road; Baltimore, Maryland 21234
E-mail: David . Turnbaugh at Maryland Realist . com

Last updated on 06/03/2009