Sigsbee & Ida Mae

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#333366" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>Sigsbee and Ida Mae at </B><B>Chesapeake Appreciation Day 1977</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=165 BGCOLOR="#777777" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="132" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 35 ><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id84.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Before The Wind"><U><B><IMG SRC="007151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id95.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Skipjack at Anchor"><U><B><IMG SRC="008151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="20"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="35" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="20" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id137.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Oil Paintings Printed on Canvas 15 x 30 "><U><B><IMG SRC="00d0d1d0.gif" border=0 width="13" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="27"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div> <A HREF="id137.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Oil Paintings Printed on Canvas 15 x 30 "><U><B>Return to Water Color & Oil page</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#66CCFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div>   <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" >  </FONT>           </div> <div> <B>The Chesapeake Appreciation Days celebration was sponsored by the Maryland Watermans Association (MWA) and it was held every year at Sandy Point for 32 years, the last being in October of 1996.  T</B><B>he Chesapeake Appreciation Days weekend each year </B><B>marked the beginning of the oystering season and the </B><B>premier event was always the Skipjack races and most of the remaining working skipjacks each year participated.  In 1977 Ida Mae and Sigsbee approached the Sandy Point Lighthouse on a sunny day with a brisk breeze.  The 42 foot Ida Mae was built in 1898 in Urbanna, Maryland.   The 47 foot Sigsbee was built in 1901 at Deal Island, Maryland.   </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>While the numbers of these craft has remained stable for a couple of years they are slowly but continually disappearing as rising operating costs make them less profitable.  Their days will end if Maryland ever repeals current conservation laws which permit dredging under power (using the skipjacks powered yawl boat as a pucher) only two days per week, Monday and Tuesday.   Dredging was only allowed on the Bay under sail o</B><B>n Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday until just recently when the law was changed to allow watermen  the option of chosing which two days each week they will dredge under power using the yawl boat.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The celebrations demise was the result of several consecutive years with rain and/or heavy fog both days.  In an effort to save the event the MWA moved the dates of the event from the last weekend in October each year to the first weekend in October in 1996 hoping to break the bad weather pattern; however, that weekend too suffered from rain both days.  Fate had reduced attendance to the point where cummulative financial losses and lack of commitments for continued financial and vendor support forced the MWA to discontinue the event. </B></div> <div> <B>                                   </B></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>