FDR's Ice Yacht Hawk, moved out of FDR Museum

The Archives, again. December 2011 ( I think)
Members of HRIYC help the National Park Service extricate FDR's ice yacht Hawk
from the basement of the FDR library. NPS planned a major renovation of the library then and Hawk had to go - it wasn't in the plans for the redesigned museum. Before going to warehouse storage a mile away, we set it up in the Wallace Visitors Center; It was the first public display of the ice yacht in a long time.
Many thanks to Tom Smith for capturing the event on film. Photos courtesy & copyright Tom Smith.

Basement of the FDR library. Hawk had been out of view for many years.

The removal team. 

Then director Sarah Olsen hands over the tiller to then commodore Bob Wills.

Backbone comes out the casement window, 

The pieces went on a 150 yard walk from Museum to Visitor Center.

Plank come out.

One of the sheer legs of this lateen rigged boat.

Plank

Mighty big & heavy runners on Hawk. 

Arriving in the Wallace Visitors Center.

Hawk was then displayed for 2 weeks over the December holidays.

Starboard runner bolted on.

Gammon strap bolts plank & backbone together.

Buckhout built Hawk in 1901.

Beautiful velvet covered, horsehair cushions.

The late Bob Lawrence oversees the assembly.

Mostly complete, happy assembly crew.

FDR was vice commodore of HRIYC in 1908.
More HERE during a later display in 2014.

The Drake Letters

Captain Frank Drake, of New Hamburgh, corresponded with Ray Ruge over many years.

I have made several posts featuring Frank Drake's letters to Ray Ruge. 

https://hudsonrivericeyachting.blogspot.com/2016/02/a-letter-from-captain-drake-1943.html  

https://hudsonrivericeyachting.blogspot.com/2010/07/frank-drake-corresponded-frequently.html 

This is an effort to collect them in one spot on the blog. As I go through my archives of photos and research, I stumble back upon more of these letters. These are all images taken from the original letters that are part of the Ray Ruge collection at the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Kingston, NY.  

I find them a remarkable view into life along the Hudson during the war years and post war years. 

Here is my introduction from a previous post:

Capt. Frank Drake worked steamboats and ice boats on the Hudson River for over 60 years. His father was an early member of the New Hamburgh Ice Yacht Club, sailing the second class sloop "Mischief."
Drake has at the helm of "Scout" when it captured the Ice Challenge Pennant of America in 1922 - the last race for the 30 foot silk pennant during the era of stern steerers.  Drake eventually returned the Ice Yacht Challenge Pennant to The FDR Library and helped, along with Ruge, to get a new version made. The 'new' pennant was again raced for in 1951 on Greenwood Lake and won by Ed Rollberg of the Fox Lake Ice Yacht Club in Illinois.
Drake and Ray Ruge became friends and corresponded about iceboating news in the 1940s. Some of those letters are part of the Ruge collection at the Hudson River Maritime Museum. 

Hope you enjoy them. 

March 5, 1942 (1)

March 5, 1942 (2)

April 6, 1942 (1)

April 6, 1942 (2) 

                             August 23, 1942 (1) 

                

                                 August 23, 1942 (2)

                     

                          November 8, 1942 (1) 

                 

                            November 8, 1942 (2)

                        

                                 November 8, 1942 (3)

                           

                              January 4, 1943 (1)

                               

                                   January 4, 1943 (2)

                          

                          August 2, 1943 (1)  

                       

                                  August 2, 1943 (2) 

                          

                                October 27, 1943 

                               December 21, 1943 (1)

December 21, 1943 (2)

                             January 6, 1944

                                

                                  January 26, 1944 (1)

                                                          January 26, 1944 (2)
            

 March 20, 1944 (1)

                       

                                                                     March 20, 1944 (2) 

                                                                            

                      April 6,1944 (1)

                           April 6,1944 (2)

                                                                    April 15, 1944 (1)

                                                                   
                      April 15, 1944 (2)

                      April 15, 1944 (3)

                    April 15, 1944 (4) 

  

                       November 12, 1944 (1)

                        November 12, 1944 (2)

                    

                        November 12, 1944 (3)

           
                        November 12, 1944 (4)

                       November 12, 1944 (5)

Nov. 25, 1944 (1)

                        Nov. 25, 1944 (2)

                      Nov. 25, 1944 (3)

                        Nov. 25, 1944 (4)

                        March 2, 1945 (1)

                        

                       March 2, 1945 (2) 

                        March 2, 1945 (3)

                    April 29,1945 (1)

                    April 29,1945 (2)

Last letter as far as I know ( at least through the Ruge collection). I would love to have read Drake's thoughts when the war was finally over and the "boys"   were home. Drake died June 4, 1954.  

Here are a few images of boats Drake refers to in many of the letters:

                 A sketch of Edwa  (likely drawn by Ruge) - lateen rigged stern steerer,
with a steering wheel/cable steering system.

                     Drake's burgee for Edwa, now in possession of the Lawrence family on Orange Lake. 

  Ranger, Built by the Merritt Brothers at Chelsea. this is a later version -

modified with the steering wheel/cable/sprocket system to keep rudder at the stern.