George Shiverick, Shipbuilder of Kingston, Ma., historical references:
This page is a work in progress. Return
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The raw information below is taken directly from the references
cited.
1880 US Federal Census for the village of East Dennis, MA, taken during the second week of June in 1880.
128/137 David SHIVERICK M 67 Head, retired Ship Captain
Jerusha H. Shiverick F 67 wife
Lydia H. F 34 daughter
130/139 David SHIVERICK, Jr. M 37 Head laborer
Hannah Shiverick
F 36 wife
George W. M 9 son
Sarah S.
F 7 daughter
Olive A.
F 3 daughter
Thus it appears that George W. Shiverick was born between June 1871 and June
1872.
I haven't really worked on George
W.Shiverick's geneology yet. See also Shiverick.
see also SHIVERICK,
BRADLEY 2005,
Shiverick,
ArthurC born 22 Apr 1892, Chicago, Cook, Illinois died 14 Oct 1955, <Woods
Hole - Village Cemetery and Churchyard, Barnstable, Massachusetts>
Shiverick, Arthur FrankC born 20 Aug 1863, Dennis, Barnstable, Massachusetts
died 4 Feb 1906, Omaha, Douglas, Nebraska
Shiverick,
Asa FrankC born 26 Sep 1861, Dennis, Barnstable, Massachusetts died 17 Dec
1930, Chicago, Cook, Illinois
Shiverick, Asa Jr.S born 1816 died 1884
Shiverick, Bessie CrowellC born 25 Jul 1858, Dennis, Barnstable, Massachusetts
died 24 Apr 1904, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts
Shiverick, Francis TobeyC born 18 Sep 1896, Chicago, Cook, Illinois died 25
Oct 1936, Chicago, Cook, Illinois
Shiverick, LunetteC born 25 Jan 1860 died 14 Apr 1947, Falmouth, Barnstable,
Massachusetts
Shiverick, Mary StorerC born 2 Sep 1920 died 17 Feb 1997, Dennis, Barnstable,
Massachusetts
Shiverick, Ruth AnnC born 1922 died 1970
Shiverick, Ruth TobeyC born 3 Nov 1867, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts
died 7 Jun 1955, New York City, New York, New York
Shiverick, Seth TobeyC born Jul 1866 died Infant
In the nineteenth-century nearly 300 vessels, large and small, were built in the Kingston yards and sailed as fishing boats and whalers, as coasters and as traders in the Mediterranean, Middle East and China trade. While Kingston's shipbuilding industry, started ca.1713, flourished, transportation by land became easier and safer when the Old Colony Rail Road came to town in 1845. Towards the end of the nineteenth-century the building of commercials ships declined and one by one the yards closed. They were soon replaces by a few small boatyards, perhaps the most notable was the yard of George Shiverick. Shiverick, who from 1898-1940, designed and built racing yachts and the famed Shiverick catboats, one of which was owned by Franklin D. Roosevelt.
2.Kingston Maritime History-Reprinted from Major Bradford's Town: A History of Kingston, by Doris Johnson Melville ~ Copyright © 1976 by Town of Kingston.
In 1898, Captain Ransom built the largest vessel at The Landing since the Helen A. Holmes in 1874 - the 30-ton steamer, Tiger, 53 feet 0.A. (over-all length) 14-foot beam and 6-foot draft.
Also building at The Landing on the Jones River in Kingston was George W. Shiverick, born in East Dennis, who started learning the boatbuilding business in 1888 from Charles Jenkins of Harwichport, then in 1890 from C. C. Hanley of Monument Beach, building Cape Cod catboats.
In 1895, George Shiverick came to Kingston and started building in a yard on land leased from Walter C. Hammond at The Landing, about where Maple Street now intersects with Landing Road. (The boatyard is now owned by Franklin Zwicker.)
George Shiverick became legendary in yachting circles, even as a young man, becallse his boats were fast. And his start toward legend status was given a big boost shortly after he came to Kingston, when he was approached by Melbourne McDowell, a well-to-do actor who summered in Duxbury and who had in mind a special competition. McDowell made an offer: if George Shiverick built him a yacht that could beat the syndicate-owned Nancy Hanks three out of five races, McDowell would double the price quoted for building the boat.
McDowell was married to Fanny Lily Gipsy Davenport, the most popular and successful actress-manager of the last quarter of the 19th century in the American theater - much more successful than her husband. Quite naturally, he named his speedy yacht Fanny D.
The Fanny D. showed her heels to the Nancy Hanks in three races and George
Shiverick not only collected his double payment but he and his bride, Alice
Rogers of Plymouth, were treated to the bonus of a trip to New York City and
front row seats at Fanny Davenport's current smash hit.
Town landing as it appears today.
At one time, the entire racing fleet at the Duxbury Yacht Club was built by Shiverick - three classes of over 20 boats each. Two were sleek sloop classes, the Massachusetts Bay 15s, about 25 feet long overall, and the I-class 18 feet at the waterline and about 28 to 30 feet overall; plus the 18-foot cat-boat, many of which have survived to serve the current generation. These boats were not only built by Shiverick but designed by him - although he also built from other designers' plans, such as the racing class Pilgrim, a Sparkman and Stephens design, and the Duxbury Duck, a John Alden design.
By 1940 when he retired - three years before he died and after building some 350 boats including fishing boats and other auxiliary-powered boats - Shiverick was complaining that nobody wanted to pay $400 or $500 for a good boat anymore. So he sold his boatyard and threw away just about all his records and papers. "He couldn't imagine anyone being interested so he threw his papers out," his son Roger said. (Roger Shiverick is an engineering officer with the United States Lines, working on automated container ships.)
Perhaps George Shiverick would be surprised that the few papers and half
models he left behind have enriched the story of American sea history as being
collected by the Mystic Seaport Museum in Connecticut. The seaport museum also
owns three Shiverick boats, including a 25-foot sloop once owned by Franklin
Delano Roosevelt and sailed by the former President at Campobello; the Shiverick
material has been preserved along with most of the business records, now in
the archives at Mystic, of Kingston's
Joseph Holmes. also (Log
of Mystic Seaport, vol.53, issue 1, page 24)
3. Shiverick and Plymouth Yacht Club- One of America's Oldest Yacht Clubs, Founded in 1890
By the last quarter of the 19th century, yacht clubs were organizing to hold competitions featuring contemporary workboats in glossy, yachty versions: small spritsail-rigged boats and catboats in several sizes. A pewter trophy cup awarded to 23 year-old George Shiverick for taking second place in an 1893 race bears an engraving of a catboat that appears to be about 25 ft. long.
An "Association Race" on August 31, 1899, as recorded in Manning’s Yacht Register–1900, sailed a course outside Plymouth Harbor in light southwest winds with elapsed times of two to two and a-half hours. Class D included 25-ft. cabin catboats; Class L had 21-ft. decked boats and Class Y, 21-ft. cabin catboats. A "Second Special Class" sailed a shorter inside course over a one to one and a-half hour period. Many of the same larger catboats raced in competitions at Quincy Yacht Club "off Houghs Neck" and at the Hull Yacht Club "off Nahant," according to Manning’s.
The concept of the one-design class was still in the future when the Plymouth Yacht Club was organized, but Shiverick’s Boat Yard in Kingston eventually turned out many of the early class boats raced at Plymouth and at Duxbury; among them, Massachusetts 15s, about 25 ft. LOA but 15 ft. LWL; a class of 17 ft. decked catboats; and later, some of the 18 ft. Duxbury Ducks, a John Alden design.
4.Shiverick in Wooden Boat Magazine- September/October 2005, p. 59 " In 1895, George Shiverick built his shop on the Jones River, just a few hundred yards downstream from Ransom's. He built the boats then in demand, turning out enough catboats, sloops, knockabouts and raceabouts that by 1920 the entire fleet of the Duxbury Yacht Club was Shiverick-built. To this day the name Shiverick is spoken with reverence within the the shadow of that club's deck."
5.Kingston's Jones
River Marine Ecology Center, a budding and growing attraction on the South
Shore, shines light on the early boatbuilding efforts of George Shiverick
and others. The site overlooks the land where the brig Independence was built
for naval combat in the American Revolution.
The Boat Shop is housed in the old Shiverick Building. George Shiverick, world-renowned
boat builder,constructed the building in 1895. JRMEC is restoring the building
to its original design and purpose. TheBoat Shop is under agreement to Reuben
Smith of Tumblehome Boat Shop for the purpose of building,repairing and maintaining
wooden boats, and for the teaching of classes and workshops on topics related
to traditional and classic boatbuilding.
6. The
Landing Boatshop, Kingston. Message From Tumblehome Boatshop: Reuben Smith
<reuben@tumblehomeboatshop.com> Sent : Tuesday, May 2, 2006 3:31 PM To
: <msherman@catboat.com> Subject : Shiverick
"Hi, I just googled Shiverick and came across your new text. Nice to see
it up there. I just wanted to say hello, and invite you to come by the Landing
anytime you’re passing through. I’m running my boatbuilding and
restoration business in the old Shiverick shop, which is being renovated, and
also have started a new organization called Mass
Bay Maritime Artisans which seeks to perpetuate the environment in which
true maritime artisanry--skills based on scholarly study as well as experience
and practical knowledge--continues to hold its historic and essential role in
the Mass Bay region. We’re running workshops and a boatbuilding lecture
series (among other things) at the Landing, too.(detailed
catalogue)Most of my research thus far on boatbuilding at the Landing has
been on the Kingston Lobsterboat. The Bradford
House, our neighbor in Kingston, has members with strong knowledge of the
shipbuilding days. I’m eager to get down to Mystic to understand what’s
in their collection on Shiverick. There are a few dozen of his halfmodels in
this area, as well. If you’re in the area, my cell is 617 462 7215.
Yours, Reuben Smith
______________________
END SHIVERICK HISTORY edited by: Marcus M. Sherman, May 2, 2006