Samuel F Manning - and Susan

There is a wonderful piece in the latest issue of WoodenBoat magazine about my good friend, Sam Manning. The feature, beginning on page 40, recounts Sam's epic 1955 summertime trek up the coast of Maine, through the Bay of Fundy, around Prince Edward anjd Cape Brtion Isles. Matt Murphy presents a nice intro to the article on page 5, the "Editor's Page.". Sam's life has been an epic journey in itself, and his love for the sea and wooden boats are reflected in demands for his skills. He illustrated John Gardener's The Dory Book, a host of others, and is a frequent contributor to WoodenBoat. I am privileged to have garnered his interest in illustrating my book, Drfit Boats and River Dories, and it was great fun orienting him to our boats. He considers his contribnuton to my book as important as his contributions to The Dory Book.

I have attached three photos that were taken last August. One is he and his wife, Susan, readying for a row in Camden Bay with some mutual friends. Sam is sculling, backing the boat out of tight quarters. He's an artist with an oar. A second shot is he and Susan prparing for their daily row around the bay, and the third, a celebratory picture of the six of us. Susan helped keep me sane during the writing of my book. Whenever I called to visit with Sam about some piece of the project, Susan always answered and closed the conversation with the vocalization of a Loon, a touch of wilderness that helped me put things in perspective.. Great people both. And if you ever visit Camden, Maine head for the waterfront about 12:30 or 1:00. You'll see them preparing for their daily row. A small, green, wooden dory among all that super expensive glass and plastic on the water is indeed a sight to behold. It will make you proud to be a framed, wooden boat builder/owner.

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Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on February 19, 2009 at 6:17am
Excellent!! I read the article in WoodenBoat before I read your post and didn't make the connection to your book, Roger. Thanks for the "re-direct"... I would love to visit some of the boat shops in New England one day. I'll be sure to visit Camden at noon and look for the green dory.
Permalink Reply by Jason Knight on February 23, 2009 at 5:51pm
Just picked up a copy and read the article. Very interesting story - sounds like an entire book could be written about such an adventure...
Thanks for the heads up.
-jk-
Permalink Reply by Andy Hutchinson on February 23, 2009 at 9:24pm
Thanks for the photos Roger. Sam has that "Dory Smile". I'll pick up a copy of W.B. for the library. Andy
Permalink Reply by Roger Fletcher on February 24, 2009 at 7:22am
One of the things I enjoyed about the article is Manning's underlying message -- it is possible to make do with what you've got. In a way, the last paragraph to the article is a central point. Making do is certainly a mesage worth remembering in these increasingly difficult economic times. But there is also deep, personal satisfaction to projects like restoration and scratch built boats to some. I'll bet A.J., Rick, Dave and others can testify to that. The dory smile Andy references have creases that run just a little deeper, I think.
Permalink Reply by Brian on February 24, 2009 at 9:09pm
That's an amazing coincidence. I just finished that article before sitting down to check the wooden boat people website. I knew Sam sounded familiar. He is really an amazing person and brilliant artist.
Brian

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