Launch of the Fame

Memorable Moments

Capturing an event that is one of a kind and seen up close by so few is a photographer’s dream. Such was the case with the launch of the ‘Fame’.

This is known as a ‘side launch’. A fascinating process to get the boat from land into the water using a method from the very early days of boat building.

With the boat being built upright on the rails used to slide it into the water, the rails are then ‘greased’, the boat tipped to one side, the blocks holding it knocked out, and away it goes.

A remarkable event!

I was most fortunate to be present the day Harold and his crew launched the Fame.

The wooden boat replica was built board by board by a master at his craft.

Harold Burnham has a family lineage in Essex that goes back to the very earliest days of boat building in this country. His story is incredibly interesting and is worth the read. It is a story too long to recite here so I have included a link to his website.

More about the Fame.

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