[Alan Bemis—home movies] Reel 25

Date1939 – 1948

Viewing NotesDonor notes: "Sid Shurcliff flying w/ Harry Proctor, High Head to Rockland + return. Beautiful fog below. Excellent color Cirrus + Vieux Corbeau provisioning on Hi Hd float - Harold + Posey Willis Sid + Kay Shurcliff St. John + Rev. Falls. Khamsin + CIRRUS Murry Fairbank Sarge (Sid's alcoholic friend) Lot of stuff up St. John River with Chapie on board Charlie Thompson + Lully [?] Wilder, Nanci + Bob Love, St. John River Cobscook Falls - Very good pics Passing Jordan's Delight I." The yacht Cirrus is a Fisher Island Sound 31 class sloop , sail number 11 with a distinctive red hull. She was built at Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, Bristol, RI, in 1930 (originally named Kelpie) and bought by Alan Bemis in 1934 or 1935. There were 14 boats in the class. LOA 44 ft. In 1954, Bemis converted Cirrus to a yawl rig. Bemis owned Cirrus for more than 50 years, sailing her almost exclusively in Maine and Canadian waters. A sister ship "Torch" (sail number 7) is on display at the Herreshoff Marine Museum, Bristol, RI. Views of float plane taking off from Brooklin, ME, past rowboat. POVs from plane of Brooklin other parts of the Maine coastline, islands, and sailboats below. In some views, low-lying fog coats the coastline, leaving treetops clear. In other views, the shadow of the plane can be seen on the water. Views over Naskeag Point and flying by High Head, the Bemis summer home, with Cirrus tied to the float and Vieux Corbeau moored nearby. Shots of the plane coming in for a landing in the cove by High Head, and taxiing to the dock where Sid Shurcliff (?) exits. Views of a car parked on the dock with Cirrus and Vieux Corbeau tied alongside. Harold Willis comes down ramp with heavy box, and Posey Willis unloads liquor bottles. Block ice is chipped and put in the hold, and milk in bottles awaits refrigeration. Sid Shurcliff hands Chapie Bemis cans of Schlitz beer to be put in the hold below on Cirrus. Views from Cirrus of the working harbor of St. John, New Brunswick. Tugboat goes by, and the boat passes Atlantic Refineries. The boat moves under a two decked bridge, as a train travels the lower deck over the river (underexposed). The yawl Khamsin, also from Brooklin, accompanies Cirrus, motoring through the industrial port, then along a more bucolic shoreline. Harold Willis is aboard Khamsin. There is a naked swim/dive from Khamsin while the two boats are anchored. Views of another cruise with a "mixed" crew. More views of St. John Harbor with tugboats, fishing trawlers, industrial buildings. POVs running through Cobscook Falls which shows the roughness of the ride. Views passing by the shore of Jordan's Delight Island, near Milbridge, Maine, now part of the Maine Coastal Island National Wildlife Refuge.