Marco Polo Project

125th anniversary on horizon of sinking of Marco Polo

JEFF DUCHARME
TELEGRAPH-JOURNAL
JULY 16/08

    The last milestone in the storied history of the Marco Polo is July 25. That date marks 125th anniversary of when the tall ship sank off the shores of Cavendish, P.E.I.
   It's also been a century since Lucy Maud Montgomery wrote Anne of Green Gables, which has created a tourism bonanza for the tiny island of P.E.I. But the little, mischievous redhead wasn't Montgomery's first published story.
   At the age of 17, she wrote an essay about the sinking of the Marco Polo, an event she witnessed when she was only eigh years old.
   "What a day that 25th day of July was in Cavendish! The wind blew a hurricane and the waves ran mountains high; the storm had begun two days before and had now reached its highest pitch of fu ry," she wrote.
   "She grounded about 300 yards from the shore, and, just as she struck, the crew cut the rigging, and the foremast and the huge iron mainmast, carrying the mizzen-top-mast with it, went over with a crash that could be heard for miles above the roaring of the storm! Then the ship broached-to and lay there with the waves breaking over her."
    Barry Ogden has spearheaded the proj ect to build a one-third replica of the ship that was built in 1851 in Saint John by James Smith.
   "You couldn't reinvent this story," said Ogden.
   Ogden said the one thing all the memorable tall ships have is a great story.
   "Everybody tells us we have one of the best stories ever," Ogden said.
   Theatrical productions, novels and songs have all been written about the Saint John ship that was the first to circumnavigate the globe in six months. That accomplishment won her the title of the fastest ship in the world.
   According to Ogden, most of the tall ships were built by South American dictators.
    "At times I could probably be called one," said Ogden.
   A high school teacher by trade, Ogden has been a dog with a bone when it came to building a replica of the clipper ship.
   He has even put $50,000 of his own money into the project that he expects will cost more than $300,000 by the time it's done.
   "It's been a huge financial strain on us as a family, but someone has to step up and show leadership; said Ogden.
   While they could use more volunteers and money, lately people have been stepping up to the plate with money and elbow grease.
   Saint John Harbour MLA Ed Doherty recently handed over a $20,000 cheque from the province to help and the New Brunswick Carpentry Centre is building all the deck cabins.
   "We're hoping September, maybe we can bring it across the harbour; said Ogden.
   DMK Marine has agreed to float it across the harbour on a barge.
   He hopes the ship can find a home somewhere along Water Street where the public can have access to it.
   "We want our children to see a story of success and a story of tenacity."

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