Chris Sanders Joins the Staff at the Chesapeake Maritime Museum

     St. Michaels, Md. -- Chris Sanders, of Newport, RI, has joined the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (CBMM) in St. Michaels, Maryland as a journeyman shipwright. Sanders’ work begins on the three-year restoration project of the historic skipjack, Rosie Parks. He currently resides in St. Michaels.

     Sanders previously served as a museum apprentice from 2008 to 2009, when he worked alongside CBMM’s Boat Yard Program Manager Dan Sutherland to build Vita, a 9-1/2’ tender for the 1888 classic racing yacht, Elf. Sanders also worked on the bugeye Edna E. Lockwood and assisted in the day-to-day preservation of the museum’s historic fleet of Chesapeake vessels.

     After leaving CBMM in 2009, Sanders enrolled in the International Yacht Restoration School in Newport, RI, receiving his proficiency in yacht restoration degree in June, 2011. He worked restoring mahogany runabouts in Bristol, CT prior to rejoining CBMM.

     CBMM’s professional shipwright apprenticeships are awarded using a rigorous interview and selection process. Once accepted, apprentices engage in restoration and maintenance work under the guidance of master shipwrights, and receive training for interacting with the public. Upon completion, shipwrights move forward into boatbuilding careers and other related professions. For more information, visit www.cbmm.org or call 410-745-2916.