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1862-class Sailing Canal Boat Lois McClure

The schooner Lois McClure is a full-scale replica of an 1862-class sailing canal boat, constructed in Burlington, Vermont. Although she is a fully functional replica, we do not offer boating tours; she is strictly a dockside experience. She is available for private functions, group tours, school programming, and public visitation. Call (802) 475-2022 for more information and to reserve your time slot.

2009 - Discover 1609 Tour - Flagship of the Quadricentennial!

The schooner is named in honor of Lois McClure, who, along with her husband Mac, has been a major contributor to this and many other worthy community projects in the greater Burlington area.

Brief History of Sailing Canal Boats

In 1823, the Northern Canal connecting Lake Champlain to the Hudson River was completed. The lake, which since the end of the American Revolution had been an expanding commercial highway, now virtually exploded in trade. Along with the traditionally designed sloops, schooners and the recently invented steamboats the lake now witnessed the birth of a watercraft new to North America; the sailing-canal boat.

The Lake Champlain sailing-canal boat was built as an "experiment" and designed to be able to sail from distant lake ports to the canal on the power of the wind. Upon reaching the canal, the masts were lowered and centerboard raised and the now transformed vessel could directly enter the canal. The first editions of the craft, dubbed the "1823" class, were characterized by the randomness of their design. By 1841 the design had been standardized and the "1841" class were just under 80 feet in length and roughly 13 feet in beam, so that they could fit the locks and canal prism of that period. By 1862, the expansion of the canal allowed for an expansion of design and the "1862" class was developed. This new vessel was roughly 88 feet in length and 14 feet in beam, with a slightly deeper depth of hold.

Two shipwrecks in particular were studied for the creation of our replica Lois McClure, both located in Burlington Harbor, Vermont. For the detailed story on these wrecks, follow the links to the OJ Walker, and General Butler. Now these shipwrecks are part of the Lake Champlain Underwater Historic Preserve System, accessible by any SCUBA diver.

Building the Replica

Schooner Lois McClure

• Length: 88 feet
• Beam: 14 1/2 feet
• Cargo Capacity: 4400 cubic feet
• Cargo Weight: 60 - 120 tons
• Sail Plan: Mainsail 1309 square feet; Foresail 768 sq.ft; Jib 196 sq.ft

Construction of Lois McClure began in earnest in 2002 at the Lake Champlain Transportation Company's Burlington Shipyard, shortly after the building of her tender, Mac. Since no plans exist for these sailing canal boats, LCMM turned to a talented group of naval architects, historians, and archaeologists. Both General Butler and O.J. Walker have been studied and documented. These reports were handed over to naval architect Ron A. Smith to create the plans necessary to build Lois McClure.

Boatbuilders Rob Thompson, Paul Rollins, Steve Page and Lianna Tennal headed up the large team of LCMM volunteers and staff, spending three seasons constructing the schooner, while keeping the space open for visitors to view the work in progress. The hull was built from more than 20,000 feet of white oak. White pine was used for the decks, while masts, booms and gaff were hewn from white spruce. This wood was nearly all local: with with spruce from Vermont, white oak from Vermont and New York, pine from Vermont and Maine, cedar from Maine, and even recycled Mahogany from NASA.

But our greatest resource was (and still is) our volunteers: thousands of hours of time were donated by our tireless volunteers to build and interpret this fascinating vessel.

2004 Launch and Inaugural Tour

Lois McClure was launched July 3, 2004, attended by thousands of people on the Burlington waterfront. After some work on her rigging, she was ready for her first voyage around the lake. The Inaugural Tour brought Lois McClure to many ports of call around Lake Champlain, including Whitehall, Westport, Essex, Port Henry, and Plattsburgh, NY, and St. Albans, Grand Isle, Vergennes, Basin Harbor, and Shoreham, VT.

2005 Grand Journey

In 2005, Lois McClure embarked on the Grand Journey, "From the Green Mountains to Manhattan", sponsored in large part by the farm families who own Cabot Creameries.

In these four months, she visited Burlington, Essex, Basin Harbor, and Whitehall on Lake Champlain, then traveled southwards through the Champlain Canal and Hudson River, welcoming visitors at Fort Ann, Fort Edward, Schuylerville, Mechanicville, Troy, Albany, Kingston, Poughkeepsie, Newburgh, West Point, Constitution Island, Peekskill, Jersey City, NJ, Port Washington, Kings Point, and Battery Park City in Manhattan, NYC. In all, she was host to over 22,000 visitors. See the map of the Grand Journey.

Throughout the 2005 Grand Journey, Lois McClure crew members and volunteers shared their experiences through Ship's Logs.

2006 Fall Educational Tour

The schooner toured the northern part of Lake Champlain, visiting St. Albans, VT, Grand Isle, VT, and Plattsburgh, NY in September and October. During the week, she was host to hundreds of school children from these communities, who otherwise may not have been able to travel to Burlington on field trips. Read more about this journey through the Ship's Logs.

2007 Grand Canal Journey through the Erie Canal in New York State.
Click to download the full .pdf, courtesy Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.

2007 Grand Canal Journey

In 2007, Lois McClure embarked upon the Grand Canal Journey. The replica 1862 canal schooner left her home port at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum on June 18, 2007 to travel across the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Over the course of four months, she stopped at more than 25 ports of call for tours, festivals, and celebration along the 1,000 mile voyage through the heart of Upstate New York.

This tour commemorated and celebrated the nationally significant Erie Canalway and New York’s contribution to the formation of the American nation. The 524-mile canal system, over 180 years old, is an engineering marvel that knitted together New England, New York, and the west, spreading commerce and ideas. The journey also showcases today’s canalside communities and the many historic, cultural, natural, and recreational assets they offer. Read more about this journey through the Ship's Logs.

The Grand Canal Journey was a partnership between the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, and the New York State Canal Corporation.

Lois McClure visits ports of call along the
Rivers of Richelieu River and the St. Lawrence.

2008 Our Shared Heritage Tour

In 2008, the schooner Lois McClure traveled north to the Province of Quebec, stopping at ports-of-call along the way. She was in Quebec City for their 400th anniversary celebration, commemorating the founding of that city in 1608 by French explorer Samuel de Champlain. Then Lois McClure traveled to the St. Lawrence communities of Montreal and Trois-Rivieres, and then south along the Richilieu River and Chambly Canal to the communities of Sorel, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Chambly, and Saint-Jean.

One of Lois McClure's first stops on her "Shared Heritage" Tour was Québec City.
Image courtesy of Québec City Tourism.

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2009 Discover 1609 Tour - Quebec, Lake Champlain & Champlain Canal

Educational Programs

Ships Logs

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