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Jeanie Johnston preparing for ocean crossing

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

By Pierce O’Reilly

Twelve months late and millions more invested than estimated, the future of the replica Irish Famine-era ship the Jeanie Johnston now hangs in the balance.

Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources Frank Fahey may have thrown the venture a lifeline recently, but he’s still concerned over its future. More than £2 million of additional Irish government funding will be invested this month as the minister ponders the viability of the Kerry-based millennium project.

"This funding is provided on the strict condition that the Jeanie Johnston Company prepare an ongoing viability plan for the vessel," he said. He also stressed that the government would not foot any further bills for the project, whose final price tag may reach £10 million, £7 million more than the original estimate.

A spokesperson for the project, Jim Finucane, remained confident, however, saying, "The Jeanie Johnston will be a floating ambassador for Ireland abroad and should be viewed as a national investment that will last for 100 years."

The Jeanie Johnston was supposed to be on its way to the U.S. last summer for the Fourth of July celebrations. It was expected to stop at several ports of call along the way, New York and Boston were among them. Then, in dramatic fashion, the ship’s plans ran aground. Sea testing was postponed and the trip was delayed until the late summer. Then money ran out and so too did the idea of a transAtlantic crossing in 2000.

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The project had received the support of political leaders from Ireland North and South and throughout North America when it was launched two years ago. The PUP leader, David Ervine, described the Jeanie Johnston at the time as the "ship of peace," while SDLP leader and Nobel Prize winner John Hume described the project as a symbol of cross border cooperation.

To date, with the assistance of the International Fund for Ireland and FÁS, young people from both nationalist and unionist communities have helped to build the ship and will also help to crew her during her North American Voyage.

Work on the Jeanie Johnston is nearing completion at Fenit Harbour, Co. Kerry, and according to the project committee, the ship will to commence sea trials next month.

The original Jeanie Johnston, which operated from 1847-58, was built in Quebec by the famous shipbuilder John Munn. The ship was purchased by the Donovan family of Tralee and served a dual purpose, taking timber from Canada and the U.S. to Ireland and on her return journeys carrying up to 200 Irish immigrants to the U.S. and Canada during and after the Great Famine in Ireland.

The Jeanie Johnston sailed under the command of Capt. James Attridge, from Castletownsend, Co. Cork. The ship carried a full complement of 200 passengers and a crew of 17. The passengers came predominantly from County Kerry, but the crew came from all over Ireland, Britain, the United States and Canada.

Unlike the infamous coffin ships of the time, the Jeanie Johnston never lost a passenger to disease or to the sea during at least 16 transAtlantic voyages.

On May 5, 1998, the project’s patron, President of Ireland Mary McAleese, laid the keel of the Jeanie Johnston. Work continued on the assembly and erection of the frames or ribs of the ship constructed of Irish oak throughout 1998 and early 1999.

In spring 1999 work commenced on the planking of the ship. The larch planks, sourced and cut in Austria, each had to be steamed for up to four hours in a specially built steam box prior to being secured to the frames of the ship. By steaming the planks they became supple and could bend to take the curve of the ship.

The next step was to caulk the hull. Caulking is a process whereby strands of hemp are hammered in between the planks of the ship and then covered in tar to seal the hull and make it watertight. The lower and main decks were also laid and caulked.

In April 2000, the figurehead, depicting Jeanie Johnston, designed and sculpted in larch by Dublin Artist Andrew St. Ledger, was attached to the bow of the vessel.

On May 7, 2000, up to 10,000 people gathered at Fenit Harbor for the official naming ceremony of the Jeanie Johnston, at which McAleese officiated.

Since July 2000 work has continued on board the ship with the fitting of accommodation for 40 crew, the cladding of the deck houses, the fitting out of the galley, the chart room and radio room, the plumbing and electrical installation of the ship, the fitting out of the engine room, the pipe fitting of the ship and the fitting of water and diesel tanks, the fitting of a sewage treatment system on board the vessel and the ships own fresh water making facility.

This summer, Jeanie Johnston is expected to set sail for North America. Although a final itinerary and port schedule has not yet been confirmed, the plan is to have the ship visit numerous ports along the eastern seaboard.

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