Yard Carpenters' Tradition

The heritage trade of the shipyard shipwright and ship’s carpenter who framed, planked, and fastened wooden hulls. Working from a mould loft where the lines were laid down full size, shipwrights cut frames to bevel, fastened planking with trenails and iron, and caulked seams with oakum and pitch. The craft was organized through long apprenticeships and shipwrights’ guilds and societies. The skills survive in heritage shipyards and replica builds such as the Hermione and Charles W. Morgan restoration. The ship’s carpenter (“chips”) held a recognized rating aboard.