Collections & Research

Preserving the past and ensuring a bright future.

The Collections Research Center (CRC) is the nation’s leading maritime research facility. Located across the street from Mystic Seaport, the former J. Rossie Velvet Company houses the Museum’s collections and offers safe and easy access to maritime researchers and scholars. Artifacts at the CRC include more than two million examples of maritime art, artifacts, tools, buildings, imprints and other documents, photographs, 1,000 ships registers, 600 audiotaped oral history interviews, 200 videotaped interviews, and 1.5 million feet of historic and contemporary maritime-related footage. The CRC opened in the fall of 2002 and was designed to exceed national museum standards for conservation, preservation, accessibility, and safety. The research center provides cutting-edge temperature and humidity control for the Museum’s artifacts and also boasts audio/video production suites and extensive photo processing and digitizing labs.

News from the Collections

Blockade-running Document Added to Mystic Seaport Collection

July 30, 2018

During the Civil War, a number of Confederate companies were formed for the sole purpose of running goods through the blockade. As with any other company, stock was sold to support the ventures. Here is one such stock.

The stock certificate seen here was from the Palmetto Exporting and Importing Company of Charleston, South Carolina. Why on earth would Mystic Seaport Museum be interested in such a certificate? The initial reason that caught our eye was the name of the person, W.R. Mallory, who paid two thousand dollars for two shares in the company. The Mallory family has been very involved with Mystic Seaport Museum since the 1930’s and at least four family members have held positions on the Museum’s Board of Directors. However, the more interesting aspect of the stock certificate in a maritime sense is that it represents shares in a company that ran blockade runners for the Confederacy during the Civil War.

Stock Certificate for the Palmetto Exporting and Importing Company

William Ravenel, listed as the President of the company in the lower right-hand corner, also held shares and board positions in at least one other blockade running company, the Importing and Exporting Company of South Carolina. It was one of the Palmetto Company’s boats, however, that encouraged blockade runners to once again use Charleston as a port of entry after most had abandoned it for Wilmington, North Carolina after the blockade of Charleston. While many blockade running boas were sleek, fast English-built steamers, Ravenel bought an old Charleston dredge, the GENERAL MOULTRIE, and in 1864 managed to send her through the blockade to Nassau in the Bahamas with a profitable cargo of cotton. As a matter-of-fact, the Palmetto Exporting and Importing Company (and the Exporting and Importing Company of South Carolina as well) was one of the few such companies to turn a profit. While Palmetto did not lose any money for its investors, the EICSC declared dividends totaling nearly 200 British Pounds and 9,000 Confederate dollars to investors by the time the company liquidated all its assets after the war.

Palmetto ran at least one other steamer through the blockade the same year as the GENERAL MOULTRIE. The GENRAL CLINCH made the same run to Nassau at the end of the year and both boats stayed there for the remainder of the war.

Much of the information here is taken from Stephen R. Wise’s Lifeline of the Confederacy: Blockade Running during the Civil War (Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1989).

Papers pertaining to William Ravenel and his business interests are held at the South Carolina Historical Society.

SHIPS PLANS COLLECTION. Limited Access August 15 to 31.

July 30, 2018

There will be limited access to the ships plans collection during the second half of August. Please plan accordingly and call ahead to 860-572-5367. Also, any orders placed during that time will take a bit longer to ship. Thanks for your patience.

Two New Portraits for Mystic Seaport Museum

June 28, 2018

Paintings of Captain George Seymore Brewster and his wife Mary Lockwood Clark Brewster were recently acquired by Mystic Seaport Museum.

The two paintings below are a recent acquisition via bequest from the estate of Barbara Snow Delaney, former managing editor of Antiques Magazine. Barbara and husband Edmund T. Delaney were very socially active in the Chester, CT community for many years, establishing the historical society among their activities. According to Barbara’s will, the paintings represent Stonington whaling Captain George Seymore Brewster and his wife Mary Lockwood Clark Brewster. It certainly appears that the portraits were executed at different times by two different hands, but likely in the 1840’s.

Captain and Mrs. George Brewster

George S. Brewster was from a family of seafaring men and two of his brothers also made their living as captains of whaleships. George’s brother William was also married to a woman named Mary who has become well known in maritime circles because of her writings as she sailed with her husband during his whaling career. And surprise! George’s brother Charles was married to a woman named…..Mary. Dinner talk must have been confusing when all three couples got together.

George S. Brewster, born in 1811, supposedly started his career in sailing vessels at the early age of 9, according to his obituary in the Stonington Mirror in 1882. Connecticut crew lists show him at the age of 13 as part of the crew of the sealing brig ALABAMA PACKET. During his career George commanded five different whaleships, the FELLOWES, FRANCIS, GEORGE, HELVETIUS and PHILETUS. The HELVETIUS was stranded off Oahu and was a total loss. Interestingly, each of the three brothers were in command of the PHILETUS during their careers.

George met an unusual and press worthy demise in August of 1882. He and his two brother captains were to be pall bearers at the funeral of their Aunt Lydia Chesebro who died at the age of 92. At this time George was a selectman of Stonington and after standing to say a few words about his aunt and her upstanding character, George went back to his pew, sat down, and died. His death caused quite a stir in the church and later in the community. His brothers went about the business of burying their aunt and then returned to the church to bear their brother back to his home where he was prepared for his own funeral.