Shad boat
Encyclopedia
The shad boat is a traditional fishing boat which was proclaimed the Official State Historic Boat of North Carolina
by the North Carolina General Assembly
in 1987.
One hundred years earlier, George Washington Creef of Roanoke Island
built the first shad boat in North Carolina in the early 1880s. Creef shaped his boat hull from the root ball of Atlantic white cedar, also known as juniper
, trees that grew along the shoreline of the pocosin
wetland region of southeast Virginia
and northeast North Carolina. The boat type is named after the shad
which was the type of fish caught from the boats.
Initially, the shad boat had a round-bottomed hull and single mast rigged with a sprit sail
. Oddly, the sprit rigged mainsail was often accompanied by a jib
and a topsail
. Later, in the early 1900s, the hull shape was altered into a hard chine "v" bottom to support an engine block. Once the "pickup truck
" of the waters of eastern North Carolina, there are only a handful of relic shad boats left on Roanoke Island. One is on view at the George Washington Creef Boathouse in Manteo, where the curator, Scott Whitesides and volunteers replicated the Creef shad boat in 2002. Another shad boat, originally built by Alvira Wright in 1904, is undergoing restoration for eventual display at the Museum of the Albemarle
in Elizabeth City
. A shad boat is also on display at the Roanoke River Maritime Museum across the street from the replica Roanoke River Light
in Plymouth
.
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
by the North Carolina General Assembly
North Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The General Assembly drafts and legislates the state laws of North Carolina, also known as the General Statutes...
in 1987.
One hundred years earlier, George Washington Creef of Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island is an island in Dare County near the coast of North Carolina, United States. It was named after the historical Roanoke Carolina Algonquian people who inhabited the area in the 16th century at the time of English exploration....
built the first shad boat in North Carolina in the early 1880s. Creef shaped his boat hull from the root ball of Atlantic white cedar, also known as juniper
Juniper
Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
, trees that grew along the shoreline of the pocosin
Pocosin
Pocosin is a term for a type of palustrine wetland with deep, acidic, sandy, peat soils. Groundwater saturates the soil except during brief seasonal dry spells and during prolonged droughts...
wetland region of southeast Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and northeast North Carolina. The boat type is named after the shad
Shad
The shads or river herrings comprise the genus Alosa, fish related to herring in the family Clupeidae. They are distinct from others in that family by having a deeper body and spawning in rivers. The several species frequent different areas on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea....
which was the type of fish caught from the boats.
Initially, the shad boat had a round-bottomed hull and single mast rigged with a sprit sail
Spritsail
The spritsail is a form of three or four-sided, fore-aft sail and its rig. Unlike the gaff where the head hangs from a spar along its edge, this rig supports the leech of the sail by means of a spar or spars named a sprit...
. Oddly, the sprit rigged mainsail was often accompanied by a jib
Jib
A jib is a triangular staysail set ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel. Its tack is fixed to the bowsprit, to the bow, or to the deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast...
and a topsail
Topsail
A topsail is a sail set above another sail; on square-rigged vessels further sails may be set above topsails.- Square rig :On a square rigged vessel, a topsail is a square sail rigged above the course sail and below the topgallant sail where carried...
. Later, in the early 1900s, the hull shape was altered into a hard chine "v" bottom to support an engine block. Once the "pickup truck
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
" of the waters of eastern North Carolina, there are only a handful of relic shad boats left on Roanoke Island. One is on view at the George Washington Creef Boathouse in Manteo, where the curator, Scott Whitesides and volunteers replicated the Creef shad boat in 2002. Another shad boat, originally built by Alvira Wright in 1904, is undergoing restoration for eventual display at the Museum of the Albemarle
Museum of the Albemarle
The Museum of the Albemarle is located in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. It serves as the northeastern regional branch of the North Carolina Museum of History...
in Elizabeth City
Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Elizabeth City is a city in Pasquotank County and Camden County in the State of North Carolina. With a population of 18,683 at the 2010 census, Elizabeth City is the county seat of Pasquotank County....
. A shad boat is also on display at the Roanoke River Maritime Museum across the street from the replica Roanoke River Light
Roanoke River Light
The Roanoke River Light is a historic lighthouse which once stood in Albemarle Sound at the mouth of the Roanoke River in North Carolina. The only surviving screw-pile lighthouse in the state, it has since been moved twice, and a replica of a predecessor light has been erected at a fourth...
in Plymouth
Plymouth, North Carolina
Plymouth is the largest town in Washington County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 4,107 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Washington County...
.
See also
- List of U.S. state ships The shad boat became North Carolina's state historic boat in 1987
- Shad fishingShad fishingShad are valued as a sport fish. The male shad is an excellent game fish, showing multiple jumps and an occasional end-over-end; it has been called a "freshwater tarpon". The pregnant female does not fight much, but is often kept for the roe. The current world record is listed by the IGFA as , set...