The Colonial Mast Trade: a British Perspective – Falmouth, ME

Welcome to “The Colonial Mast Trade: a British Perspective” event!

Date: Sun Sep 29 2024

Time: 2:30:00 GMT-05:30 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Location: The Woodlands Club

Join us for a fascinating look at the Colonial Mast Trade from a British point of view. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to support Tate House Museum’s educational and preservation projects while gaining a new perspective on Britain’s global harvesting of trees over hundreds of years including the cutting and shipping of white pines from New England.

High tea will be followed with a talk by UK arboriculturist Clive Mayhew “Building British Ships with American Timber,” which will provide a unique context to George Tate’s role as Mast Agent in 18th century Portland.

History and map lovers will have the opportunity to win a beautifully-framed facsimile of a rare 1720s map of Casco Bay by English cartographer Cyprian Southack reproduced from the Tate House collection. Raffle tickets can be purchased in advance until the time of drawing, following Mr. Mayhew’s lecture. Supporters can participate in the raffle without being present at the event. For map details, visit tatehouse.org or see below.

The Harbour of Casco Bay and Islands Adjacent By Cap.t Cyprian Southicke [sic]

From The English Pilot. The Fourth Book, 1755

Emanuel Bowen (1694-1767), engraver, after Cyprian Southack (1662-1745)

London, England (size18. 5″ W x 22″ H)

(Tate House Museum original is a gift of Richard and Susan Flaherty)

Captain Cyprian Southack, an early American chart maker, first surveyed the coast around what became Portland while on an English expedition to Casco Bay in 1698. The chart was not published until 1720 in The English Pilot, The Fourth Book, the standard navigational guide to American waters. Although the chart was full of errors, it remained widely available for much of the eighteenth century as the volume saw numerous editions for over a century.

Raffle Terms & Conditions
Raffle tickets will be sold on this site until midnight the night before the event. Winners will be chosen in a random drawing at our fundraiser on Sept 29 and raffle ticket holders do not need to be present at the drawing to win. The winner will be announced at the event and notified by email at the address provided with raffle ticket purchase. All raffle ticket sales are final. Winners will be responsible for collecting their prize from the Tate House Museum. Shipping is available upon request with cost to be covered by the raffle winner.