Schooner Lois McClure
Replica 1862 canal schooner Lois McClure
Schooner Lois McClure Tentative Tour Schedule:
Please check back for schedule updates.
Due to berthing and depth constraints, not all vessels will be at all tour stops. Expected vessels can change without notice.
Length: 88’
Beam: 14’6”
The schooner Lois McClure is a full-scale replica of an 1862-class sailing canal boat, constructed in Burlington, Vermont.
In 1823, the Northern Canal connecting Lake Champlain to the Hudson River was completed. The lake, which since the end of the American Revolution had been an expanding commercial highway, now virtually exploded in trade. Along with the traditionally designed sloops, schooners and the recently invented steamboats the lake now witnessed the birth of a watercraft new to North America; the sailing-canal boat.
The Lake Champlain sailing-canal boat was built as an "experiment" and designed to be able to sail from distant lake ports to the canal on the power of the wind. Upon reaching the canal, the masts were lowered and centerboard raised and the now transformed vessel could directly enter the canal. By 1862, the expansion of the canal allowed for an expansion of design and the "1862" class was developed.
Two shipwrecks in particular were studied for the creation of our replica, the O.J. Walker and General Butler, both located in Burlington Harbor, Vermont. Construction of Lois McClure began in earnest in 2002 at the Lake Champlain Transportation Company's Burlington Shipyard. Since no plans exist for these sailing canal boats, LCMM turned to a talented group of naval architects, historians, and archaeologists. Naval architect Ron A. Smith created the plans based on studies of the General Butler and O.J. Walker.
The hull was built from more than 20,000 feet of white oak. White pine was used for the decks; while masts, booms and gaff were hewn from white spruce. This wood was nearly all local, with spruce from Vermont, white oak from Vermont and New York, pine from Vermont and Maine, cedar from Maine, and even recycled mahogany from NASA.
Operated by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, the schooner offers dockside programs, and is available for private functions, school and group tours, and public visitation.
For more information on Schooner Lois McClure:
www.lcmm.org/