Restoration
The JOLLY DOLPHIN needed a new steward in 2007 when we found her in a marina on the Wicomico Creek near Salisbury, Maryland, where she had languished for several years.
“In April of 2007, we were going down to Chincoteague, and I had seen an ad for the JOLLY DOLPHIN and was impressed by it because it’s a traditional Chesapeake Bay sailboat. It turns out to be on the way, so we stopped to have a look at it. And I couldn’t talk myself out of it. It wasn’t, you know, like, love at first sight, it was just a very fascinating thing.” – Jack Zuraw
From early 2008 through December of 2010 we undertook a thorough hull restoration at the Ruark Boatworks of the Richardson Maritime Museum in Cambridge, Maryland. Ultimately about 70 percent of the original wood was replaced, matching the eastern cedar planking and oak structure.
On November 29, 2010, after two years replacing the chine, timbers, bottom and some side planking, the JOLLY DOLPHIN was afloat once again!
Reconstruction Discussion Video links
JOLLY DOLPHIN Overview The Magothy River Association/Charles Germain.
JOLLY DOLPHIN Restoration in Focus The Magothy River Association/Charles Germain.
JOLLY DOLPHIN Engine, Rigging and Sails The Magothy River Association/Charles Germain.
