He did this without telling any of the people trying to help him.īlue Dolphin spent her final years in Detroit near the Goat Yard Marina. When money problems began to plague the ship again, Pica hired a tug to tow the Blue Dolphin over the border into the United States and away from his creditors. Unfortunately, a few weeks after writing the song 'Man with Blue Dolphin' Rogers died in an airplane fire in Cincinnati. The liner notes mention that Rogers wrote the song based on his contact with Bruce Kemp and Kemp's experiences trying to raise and restore the Blue Dolphin. Rogers commemorated the schooner with his song, 'Man with Blue Dolphin', part of his From Fresh Water album. He was instrumental in getting folk singer Stan Rogers to agree to aid the project. Kemp also worked on the project as the last in a string of divers and helped raise the ship the second time. Kemp and his wife Donna worked with Pica in trying to set up a foundation, have debts forgiven and to make the ship an ambassador for the city of Sarnia. Because of his affiliation with another magazine at the time, he wrote the final piece under the name of Howard Douglas Jr. Journalist and photographer Bruce Kemp became interested in the restoration when he was assigned the story by Sailing Canada Magazine. Restoration attempt and Stan Rogers song The second sinking Pica attributed to sabotage - unsubstantiated. With no ship keeper to stem the inflow, she sank. With ice-out, so went the caulking opening up a seam one eighth inch wide by nearly one hundred feet long. The first time, Pica said the fresh water permeated her okum caulking and when freeze up came it turned to ice. She sank at the dock in Sarnia at least twice during the restoration efforts. That was the last time the Blue Dolphin left the dock under her own power. He sailed the Blue Dolphin into the Great Lakes where she was berthed in Sarnia, Ontario, for a number of years. Pica had already restored one vessel - the Katherine II - and was looking for a larger ship. A printer from Detroit named Joe Pica purchased her. While still in Maine, The Blue Dolphin changed hands again. The last information available on her indicates that she continued to conduct oceanographic and hydrobiological research out of Boothbay Harbor, Maine, into the summer of 1954. She was also authorized to fly the Naval Reserve Yacht pennant. On 3 April 1949, she was designated as 'suitable for use as a naval auxiliary in time of war' by the Chief of Naval Operations. Nutt who was involved in oceanographic research in conjunction with various universities, civilian research organizations, and the Office of Naval Research. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 11 July 1945, and she was delivered to the Maritime Commission's War Shipping Administration for disposal on 14 September 1945.Īfter the war, Blue Dolphin was apparently sold to a Mr. Shortly after Germany surrendered, she was placed out of service at Boston on 28 June 1945. She was designated a miscellaneous auxiliary, IX 65 and placed in service at the Section Base, Boston on 6 April 1942.īlue Dolphin spent the next 38 months serving as station vessel at Casco Bay, Maine. US Navy service īlue Dolphin was acquired by the Navy on 17 March 1942 from Amory Coolidge for the nominal fee of $1.00. In 1933, Blue Dolphin was purchased by Boston businessman Amory Coolidge (1895–1952) who transferred her registry to Boston, Massachusetts in 1935. She was registered at Shelburne for the beginning of her career which her owner used as a base for adventure trips to the north.

A rich businessman interested in 'long foreign voyages,' Felie ordered a fishing schooner style vessel with an extra reinforced hull but luxurious cabins in place of a fishing hold. Blue Dolphin was built for Stephen Henry Velie, Jr of Kansas City. Sometimes called a sister ship to Bluenose, Blue Dolphin was in fact considerably smaller but reflected the overall style of Bluenose. She served as US Navy auxiliary, IX 65 in World War II and as a postwar research vessel made famous by a Stan Rogers song.īlue Dolphin was designed by the famous naval architect William Roue, designer of the famous racing schooner Bluenose. For other uses, see Blue dolphin (disambiguation).īlue Dolphin was an auxiliary schooner built in 1926 at Shelburne, Nova Scotia by the Shelburne Shipbuilding Company as an adventure yacht.