Captain Greg Bailey Reads a Newspaper Article About Possible Financial Issues for the Amistad Earlier Today

By Carol McCracken  (Post # 1,442)

Apparently there are people in Connecticut who want us to stay in Connecticut said Amistad ship Captain Greg Bailey this afternoon after reading a report of possible financial problems for the ship on the front page of  today’s “Portland Press Herald.”  Mystic Seaport, Connecticut where the tall ship Amistad was built is her home port as well.

The Amistad, the replica of the famous slave ship, was taken ashore at Gowen Marine earlier this week for some routine maintenance according to Captain Bailey.  That includes having the bottom cleaned and painted, the installation of a fresh water tank as well as her yearly checkup.  Both Portland Yacht Services and Gowen Marine are involved in this routine work. The Amistad was launched in 2010 and has been well cared for so she’s in good shape.  The Captain said he expects to leave Portland by the end of June headed for Buzzards Bay about the Fourth of July.

“We take the Amistad from place to place and tell her story as well as we can about the famous slave ship.    She’s a good will ambassador.  She promotes the State of Connecticut and that’s what we are about,” said Captain Bailey.  “She does a lot more good for Connecticut in other ports than she would back in Mystic.  We can’t change the past but we can go forward and solve the problems that may exist.” Captain Bailey said he had some sense there were financial issues before he read the article today, but he learned a lot more from reading it.

The Amistad is now under the management of OceanClassrooms.org and you may visit the site  to learn more about her.