Roger Allen
Roger Allen has worked in the Maritime Museum field professionally for 30 years coming through the hawshole in 1978. Allen worked his way through the professional ranks at the Philadelphia Maritime Museum becoming Shipkeeper/Curator of the 157' museum Barkentine 'Gazella Premeiro', ending his career there as Director of the Museum's Workshop on the Water small craft facility, a program he initiated and ran for over 13 years. The Workshop on the Water, aboard the liter barge 'Maple' was a classroom, and exhibition gallery dedicated to the collection and transfer of traditional boatbuilding skills unique to the area. During his time in Philadelphia as Curator of Small Craft, Roger gathered a major collection of over 60 regional watercraft under the watchful eyes of his mentor Master Boatbuilder, Joe Liener and others. Other teachers, including John Gardner of Mystic Seaport, served as advisors as Roger also built a full curriculum of skills classes for the Museum boatbuilding program.
While ranging in subjects as diverse as the China Trade and Mermaids, Noah's Arks and the life's work of naval architect Thomas Bowes, he also Curated eleven exhibitions and assisted with production of an additional five. The majority of his exhibits dealt with traditional watercraft; "Curious Cats" about the development of the Catboat, "Flashing Oars" about recreational and competitive rowing (for which he won the Max Heidere award from the US Rowing Association,) "Gone Fishing" about recreational and Commercial fishing in the Delaware Valley and Jersey Shore, "1886 Racing on the River" about Tuckups, Duckers, and other vernacular traditional watercraft in their heyday on the Delaware. The "1886" exhibit, which was a part of the national celebrations for the Constitution's Birthday, was cause for Roger to initiate the 'Constitution Cup Regatta' (a Federally funded event!) the first organized race for Tuckups and Duckers, 19th Century racing machines, in the twentieth century. While in Philadelphia he also co-founded the Tri-State Chapter of the Traditional Small Craft Association (TSCA) in 1979 with a bunch of other like minded, intrepid souls.
In 1992 Roger left Philadelphia to assume responsibility as Program Manager/ Curator of Boatbuilding Technology of the Harvey Smith Watercraft Center at the North Carolina Maritime Museum, a position he held for 9 years. The primary focus of the Museum program was preservation of traditional skills and values as they relate to the unique maritime traditions of North Carolina's wonderful coast, a challenge Allen met with a full curriculum of boatbuilding skills classes taught by staff, Master Craftsman, and professional practitioners from local maritime trades. During his stay in North Carolina Roger served as President of the national Museum Small Craft Assoc., the professional organization of Museum Curators whose area of expertise includes traditional watercraft. As a member of that organization he worked with colleague John Muir of the National Parks Services Maritime Museum in San Francisco to gather a fleet of traditional watercraft from various east and west Coast Maritime Museums and raise the funds needed to ship them all by container to the great international wooden boat shows in Douarnenez and Brest, France for the year 2000 celebrations. While in North Carolina he also became a columnist for Coastal Cruising Magazine, writing a popular column regarding all aspects of recreational sailing. Roger also started the North Carolina Chapter of TSCA in 1992 and the Coastal Carolina Maritime Model Assoc. He also organized the Great 4th Race, a 68 mile overnight endurance race for traditional boats, as one of N.C. TSCA's big annual events and was a founding member of the Beaufort Oars Rowing Club. By the time Roger left North Carolina more than 84 wooden boats had been built in his boatbuilding programs with another 30 some wooden boat restorations having been completed.
Having been an avid sailor he has made coastal voyages in the 157' Barkentine 'Gazella', and across the Atlantic in a 52' Ketch.
He has made voyages from Cape May, NJ to Bermuda, to various other islands of the Caribbean, and has sailed on such exotic bodies of water as the inner sea of the Netherlands, the canals of England, the Med, and the Okeefenokee Swamp. In 2000 Roger and Family moved aboard a 37' sailboat to begin a coastal cruising adventure that lasted two years.
Stopping for what was to be a brief visit on Florida's west coast Allen learned about a very special place called Cortez where the folks seemed to be determined to bring some sense to the uncontrolled development that was ravaging their home. When a position was created by Manatee County Clerk of Courts/ Historical Resources Department to work with the people of Cortez to help create a Maritime Museum for Florida's Gulf Coast he jumped at the chance and has been there for the past 6 years.
Currently Roger, as Historic Site Manager of the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez and Director of the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage, has just completed a $750,000 restoration of a 1912 Schoolhouse which houses the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez. The Museum opened a year ago after a three year renovation. Ongoing projects now include the last phases of a $238,000 renovation of the Cortez Village's 1890 Waterfront Post Office/ Store which has been moved on site behind the Maritime Museum building. Roger has also successfully brought $50,000 in funding to bear on renovation of a new facility to make it a suitable temporary home for the Museum's traditional skills preservation program.
Any TSCA member who has been lucky enough to attend any of the four annual Great Florida Gulf Coast Small Craft Festivals in April is aware that Roger has once again stimulated into existence a small craft event that, while not totally unique in form (since he admits that the organizing committee ripped a successful format from the Mid Atlantic Small Craft Festival held at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime
Museum) is truly unique in venue. Those who have attended the GFGCSCF I through III (with IV to be held on April 20 and 21 of 09) are also aware that another big project for which Roger is responsible is the ongoing restoration of a 100 acre waterfront parcel known as the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (F.I.S.H.) Preserve. The Preserve serves as the principal camp site and parking lot for the Small Craft Festival, among other more "naturally relevant" activities.
Five years ago Roger began the Museum's small craft program and was instrumental in successfully navigating the bureaucracy required to bring into existence a totally new County level staff position, Master Boatbuilder. Bob Pitt who fills the position runs the F.I.S.H.Boatworks, now with 35 Volunteers working Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. 7 boatbuilding projects from restoration of a 1960s era Worth Monroe Sea Sailor and 15' Cuban Refugee skiff, to a carvel planked Frank Bethel Whitehall like pulling boat are under construction in the shop. Roger is also a co-founder of the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the TSCA in 2003, and the Florida Maritime Heritage Association, the State's professional organization for the preservation of maritime heritage.
Finally, Roger claims to have capsized more varieties of traditional small craft in more places than anyone else in the profession and includes as one piece of evidence that he is the first and only skipper to date to have capsized a Chesapeake Bay log canoe in France.
While ranging in subjects as diverse as the China Trade and Mermaids, Noah's Arks and the life's work of naval architect Thomas Bowes, he also Curated eleven exhibitions and assisted with production of an additional five. The majority of his exhibits dealt with traditional watercraft; "Curious Cats" about the development of the Catboat, "Flashing Oars" about recreational and competitive rowing (for which he won the Max Heidere award from the US Rowing Association,) "Gone Fishing" about recreational and Commercial fishing in the Delaware Valley and Jersey Shore, "1886 Racing on the River" about Tuckups, Duckers, and other vernacular traditional watercraft in their heyday on the Delaware. The "1886" exhibit, which was a part of the national celebrations for the Constitution's Birthday, was cause for Roger to initiate the 'Constitution Cup Regatta' (a Federally funded event!) the first organized race for Tuckups and Duckers, 19th Century racing machines, in the twentieth century. While in Philadelphia he also co-founded the Tri-State Chapter of the Traditional Small Craft Association (TSCA) in 1979 with a bunch of other like minded, intrepid souls.
In 1992 Roger left Philadelphia to assume responsibility as Program Manager/ Curator of Boatbuilding Technology of the Harvey Smith Watercraft Center at the North Carolina Maritime Museum, a position he held for 9 years. The primary focus of the Museum program was preservation of traditional skills and values as they relate to the unique maritime traditions of North Carolina's wonderful coast, a challenge Allen met with a full curriculum of boatbuilding skills classes taught by staff, Master Craftsman, and professional practitioners from local maritime trades. During his stay in North Carolina Roger served as President of the national Museum Small Craft Assoc., the professional organization of Museum Curators whose area of expertise includes traditional watercraft. As a member of that organization he worked with colleague John Muir of the National Parks Services Maritime Museum in San Francisco to gather a fleet of traditional watercraft from various east and west Coast Maritime Museums and raise the funds needed to ship them all by container to the great international wooden boat shows in Douarnenez and Brest, France for the year 2000 celebrations. While in North Carolina he also became a columnist for Coastal Cruising Magazine, writing a popular column regarding all aspects of recreational sailing. Roger also started the North Carolina Chapter of TSCA in 1992 and the Coastal Carolina Maritime Model Assoc. He also organized the Great 4th Race, a 68 mile overnight endurance race for traditional boats, as one of N.C. TSCA's big annual events and was a founding member of the Beaufort Oars Rowing Club. By the time Roger left North Carolina more than 84 wooden boats had been built in his boatbuilding programs with another 30 some wooden boat restorations having been completed.
Having been an avid sailor he has made coastal voyages in the 157' Barkentine 'Gazella', and across the Atlantic in a 52' Ketch.
He has made voyages from Cape May, NJ to Bermuda, to various other islands of the Caribbean, and has sailed on such exotic bodies of water as the inner sea of the Netherlands, the canals of England, the Med, and the Okeefenokee Swamp. In 2000 Roger and Family moved aboard a 37' sailboat to begin a coastal cruising adventure that lasted two years.
Stopping for what was to be a brief visit on Florida's west coast Allen learned about a very special place called Cortez where the folks seemed to be determined to bring some sense to the uncontrolled development that was ravaging their home. When a position was created by Manatee County Clerk of Courts/ Historical Resources Department to work with the people of Cortez to help create a Maritime Museum for Florida's Gulf Coast he jumped at the chance and has been there for the past 6 years.
Currently Roger, as Historic Site Manager of the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez and Director of the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage, has just completed a $750,000 restoration of a 1912 Schoolhouse which houses the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez. The Museum opened a year ago after a three year renovation. Ongoing projects now include the last phases of a $238,000 renovation of the Cortez Village's 1890 Waterfront Post Office/ Store which has been moved on site behind the Maritime Museum building. Roger has also successfully brought $50,000 in funding to bear on renovation of a new facility to make it a suitable temporary home for the Museum's traditional skills preservation program.
Any TSCA member who has been lucky enough to attend any of the four annual Great Florida Gulf Coast Small Craft Festivals in April is aware that Roger has once again stimulated into existence a small craft event that, while not totally unique in form (since he admits that the organizing committee ripped a successful format from the Mid Atlantic Small Craft Festival held at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime
Museum) is truly unique in venue. Those who have attended the GFGCSCF I through III (with IV to be held on April 20 and 21 of 09) are also aware that another big project for which Roger is responsible is the ongoing restoration of a 100 acre waterfront parcel known as the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (F.I.S.H.) Preserve. The Preserve serves as the principal camp site and parking lot for the Small Craft Festival, among other more "naturally relevant" activities.
Five years ago Roger began the Museum's small craft program and was instrumental in successfully navigating the bureaucracy required to bring into existence a totally new County level staff position, Master Boatbuilder. Bob Pitt who fills the position runs the F.I.S.H.Boatworks, now with 35 Volunteers working Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. 7 boatbuilding projects from restoration of a 1960s era Worth Monroe Sea Sailor and 15' Cuban Refugee skiff, to a carvel planked Frank Bethel Whitehall like pulling boat are under construction in the shop. Roger is also a co-founder of the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the TSCA in 2003, and the Florida Maritime Heritage Association, the State's professional organization for the preservation of maritime heritage.
Finally, Roger claims to have capsized more varieties of traditional small craft in more places than anyone else in the profession and includes as one piece of evidence that he is the first and only skipper to date to have capsized a Chesapeake Bay log canoe in France.
