Weather permitting, at 10 a.m. on Sunday, July 25, Nellie G II will lead nearly 40 racing vessels through the harbor, prior to their second full day of racing in the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club Regatta and Shipyard Cup Classics Challenge.

Captain and owner George McEvoy told us a bit about her history. “I would hate to see any old boat or car fall into disrepair and so I purchased her in 1967 so that she could be restored.” She now gleams with 10 coats of varnished mahogany trim, cedar planking and white oak frames.

The original Nellie G, which was built around the turn of the century, was powered with a steam engine and boiler and a stack in the middle of the upper deck. Nellie G II was built and launched on May 18, 1932 by Goudy & Stevens Shipyard in East Boothbay. She was built for Boothbay Harbor Captain Williams, who served Squirrel Island from her summer dock directly behind the Smiling Cow, with frequent ferry service. In the wintertime she was housed in the captain’s boathouse, just north of the former swing bridge, now the footbridge. Her ownership later moved from Captain Williams to Boothbay Harbor Fire Chief Harold Dodge and Captain Ross Dickson, who lived in the house adjacent to the Boothbay Region Greenhouses property on Howard Street. Later, it was sold to Captains Raymond and Bob Fish who owned her from the ’50s to 1967. During all those years, she served as a ferry boat to Squirrel Island. It has been said that the Nellie G II has never operated off of local nautical chart #314 in its entire career.

McEvoy bought the Nellie G II and started an extended restoration. At one point, he hired Chetley Rittall to construct a reproduction of the original hard top roof covering the after deck. This 44-foot vessel now has a new keel, ribs and deck as well as a new Ford/Lehman engine, which replaces the original Packard straight-eight automobile engine.

This historic vessel is now used privately and participates in events which attest to the nautical history of Boothbay Harbor.

See you there! July 25 at 10 a.m. – Inner harbor parade of BHYC Regatta Shipyard Cup Classic Challenge racing boats. Parade route east side to west. Announcer heard at Whale Park, Coastal Prime, or on VHF channel 72 or livestream on Facebook BoothbayRegatta

Contact Andy Mutch at 410-353-3861 for more information.