The Wah-Tut-Ca Whaleboat Project - Building the Craig Ryder
1937 Wah-Tut-Ca Whaleboat On Northwood LakeIt has been almost 50 years since a whaleboat has been moored to a Wah-Tut-Ca dock. Yet the memory of those days when Wah-Tut-Ca’s pirates ruled Northwood Lake has not been forgotten. At least not forgotten by the Key Foundation.
Anticipating the completion of the Andrew Curry Green Boathouse, the Key Foundation's Board of Directors began considering another long-term project. Building the Boathouse was a tremendous undertaking that took almost four years to complete. Despite that struggle, the Foundation grew. The excitement and commitment to a common goal led to an exceptional outcome that was good for Wah-Tut-Ca and TKF.
The board's question was, “What’s next?” The foundation's selection of this project serves multiple interests. First and foremost, the Foundation desires to provide a unique program opportunity for Scout Troops who attend WTCSR. In recent years, the camp program has grown based on the development of programs focused on individual Scouts. This project creates an exciting program for a Troop to do together.
The project also serves the Foundation’s interest in Wah-Tut-Ca history. Beginning at Wah-Tut-Ca’s predecessor Camp Chadwick and continuing until the late 1950s, the “whaleboats” were a signature craft of the Wah-Tut-Ca waterfront. In 1937, three boats were brought from Chadwick to Wah-Tut-Ca. The three ships varied in size. The 1939 camp brochure listed the craft of the Wah-Tut-Ca Navy, which included the notation of two 25 foot boats and one was 30 feet.
The completion of this project is going to take some research. The foundation has several photographs of the whaleboats at Wah-Tut-Ca and Camp Chadwick dating back to the 1920s. There are many references to them in the Key Foundation Archives. One is from Alexander Vervaert who 1987 wrote, “Our three whaleboats. Surplused by the US Coast Guard these big canoes required much maintenance but were great fun. Sometime rigged with sails they were safe and steady. On Sunday Catholic boys would get to Mass in one of these arks towed by the waterfronts motor launch. The boats eventually rotted away beached in the cove yielding an incredible pile of brass hardware. World War II cut off our supply and phased these craft out. When surplus was again made available we plied the waters on balsam rafts."
It is from this reference that one of the project leaders, Joshua Ratty, is beginning to expand the research. The United States Coast Guard has a museum and records of all the craft it has used. Josh has contacted to the Coast Guard to see what we can learn about the boats.
Once identified the project team will look at the options to return a craft to Wah-Tut-Ca. One is to find and restore an old boat of similar design. The other is to get a schematic of the boat and build a new one. The cost of the project is undetermined at this time but may cost as much as $30,000.
Naming the Boat
A final yet essential part of the whaleboat project is the naming of the boat. The boat will be named, “The Craig Ryder”, after the legendary former camp director and TKF Board member. Craig passed away in 2005, and his friends and brothers are dedicating this project to his memory. It is a project that Craig would have been committed to as it does much to help Wah-Tut-Ca’s program today while building upon Wah-Tut-Ca’s sense of tradition and mystic. If you are interested in participating in the whaleboat project, contact any member of the Key Foundation Board or info [at] keyfoundation.org.
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