NEWBURYPORT — The tall ship Alabama arrived in the city yesterday, welcoming visitors aboard for a tour of the historic ship.
The ship belongs to the Black Dog clothing store company, which opened a new store in Newburyport last spring. The Alabama will be in town until tomorrow morning and will be offering free tours today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
"This is the first visit of many for the Alabama," captain Morgan Douglas, 32, said yesterday.
The Black Dog tall ships — the Alabama and the Shenandoah — will often visit the ports where Black Dog stores are located to offer customers and residents another glimpse into the story of The Black Dog.
Robert Douglas purchased and rebuilt the Alabama in 1995. The 90-foot, gaff-rigged fore and aft schooner was originally designed by Thomas McManus and built by Pensacola Ship Building Co., Florida, in 1926. It has been rebuilt to that original design, which models a Gloucester fishing schooner, Douglas said.
Douglas, one of the sons of Robert Douglas, the founder of The Black Dog, is the captain of the Alabama and also the manager of the Black Dog Tall Ships program. For journeys, he is joined on board by a first mate and several crew members.
And of course, he also brings along one or both of his two black Labs with him for sails.
For their trip to Newburyport, Douglas and his crew left the Vineyard Monday afternoon. From here, they will travel on to Gloucester to race this weekend.
His crew stays on the ship all summer, Douglas said.
One of the main roles of the tall ships is to host the kids summer sailing program, in which youth ages 9 to 16 years old spend a week on the ship after leaving from Vineyard Harbor. They sail daily between Nantucket and Block Island, learning about its history and practicing their sailing skills, he said.
Two of his deckhands this summer, most of whom are now heading back to college, were former campers in the kids sailing program, Douglas said yesterday.
The ship can accommodate about 30 passengers overnight in her two cabins, Douglas said.
While this is his first trip to Newburyport, Douglas said he will spend these two days getting acquainted with the city.
"This has been a really good move for us," he said of the company opening a store in the city.
Immediately after opening the ship to the public yesterday, visitors began to climb on board to tour the ship — and were even allowed to climb downstairs to see the living quarters.
"It's a lovely boat," said Lotta Anderson, a visitor from Brooklyn, N.Y., who walked through with her family. The dog was "a real plus," she said.
Gesturing to her 21รขÑ2-year-old son, August, Anderson smiled.
"He thought it was a pirate ship," she said.
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