2nd life for a schooner

Skipper follows family tradition

Morgan Douglas has taken the helm from his father.

Douglas, 34, is captain of the charter schooner Alabama, which sails the waters around Martha’s Vineyard as part of The Black Dog Tall Ships fleet. The ship, built in 1926 in the style of Gloucester fishing schooners, served as a harbor pilot’s ship in Mobile, Ala., until 1966, but operated without sails for that entire 40-year period.

Alabama’s second phase of her life began when Robert Douglas — Morgan’s father — of the Coastwise Packet Co. bought the 90-foot schooner in 1967 in Vineyard Haven.

Only in 1994 did the elder Douglas finally decide to give Alabama a chance to spread canvas and sail, performing an extensive rebuild that replaced almost 90 percent of the ship and rigged her for sail, true to the original design by noted Gloucester fishing schooner designer Thomas F. McManus. The ship is linked to the Black Dog Tavern and conducts sailing tours.

“It’s awesome. Sailing around Martha’s Vineyard, it is a great spot and I feel fortunate and lucky to do it,” Douglas said. “What’s really cool is coming out here and learning how to sail the Alabama in the role of captain. It gives me an appreciation for what my dad has done all those years.”

HERALD PHOTOS, TOP AND ABOVE, BY ROBERT GREIM; CENTER PHOTO BY ALISON SHAW ALL HANDS ON DECK: Alabama’s crew works lines, top, and above, as the schooner proceeds under full sail plying the waters around Martha’s Vineyard. Used for decades as a sailless pilot boat, the vessel was restored to its original design with sails.