Freedom Figurehead - St Michaels, MD
Posted by: 
bluesnote
N 38° 47.243 W 076° 13.251
18S E 393967 N 4293890
A large figurehead located in St Michaels, Maryland. The story of how this got here is pretty funny.
Waymark Code: WM14EJC
Location: Maryland, United States
Date Posted: 06/23/2021
Views: 8
The sign says, "Where did such a big figurehead come from? A big ship? In this case, it was made for a relatively small vessel—the 88-foot schooner yacht, Freedom. Yacht designer John G. Alden never intended for Freedom to have a figurehead when she was built in 1931. But just before World War II, the schooner was given to the U.S. Naval Academy to train midshipmen in sailing. One of the captains of the vessel requested a figurehead, and the Academy's patternmaker, John M. Cook made a big one. After a few years, it was removed because it added 450 pounds to the bow and was vulnerable to damage.
Made c. 1950 by John M. Cook
On loan from the U.S. Naval Academy Museum
"...it was removed and placed in the Naval Academy Museum... Somehow some of the midshipmen entered the Museum where the Freedom figurehead was and rubbed their hands on the large bosoms for luck. One midshipman wrote his mother and told her what he did and the luck he had. Apparently his mother didn't agree. She wrote the Admiral a letter, and the Admiral's orders were, "Move it." So this is the reason the figurehead 'Freedom' is on indefinite loan to the Maritime Museum."
Type: Personalized Properties
Referenced in (list books, websites and other media):
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Additional Coordinates: Not Listed
Website Reference: Not listed
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