There comes a time when every model builder encounters Howard I. Chapelle. I have been building Chesapeake Bay small watercraft and naturally Chapelle emerges as the expert in the field by a large margin.
Chapelle documents the migration of the New Haven sharpie into a Chesapeake and Virginia working boat. He has drawn just about every Mid-Atlantic working boat over the course of centuries. And his practical guidance on boat building comes from a master boat builder.
So now I have 4 Chesapeake Bay boat builds inspired by Chapelle: the Skipjack, the Crabbing skiff "Blue Claw" or " Sweepstakes," the "Flattie" and the "Barnegat Bay Sneakbox." The ASSC is the classic, but I see how much he has to say about all manner of boats in the National Watercraft Collection. I think Chapelle is going to take up space in my brain for a long while.










Chapelle documents the migration of the New Haven sharpie into a Chesapeake and Virginia working boat. He has drawn just about every Mid-Atlantic working boat over the course of centuries. And his practical guidance on boat building comes from a master boat builder.
So now I have 4 Chesapeake Bay boat builds inspired by Chapelle: the Skipjack, the Crabbing skiff "Blue Claw" or " Sweepstakes," the "Flattie" and the "Barnegat Bay Sneakbox." The ASSC is the classic, but I see how much he has to say about all manner of boats in the National Watercraft Collection. I think Chapelle is going to take up space in my brain for a long while.










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