The Ham “ Ivy Blades
REMEMBER ?
Prior lo I he passing ol oiling ves¬
sels in ihc early 19O0‘s. there was a
type ol vessel culled ••rams.” These
vessels were link more than barges
equipped with sails, to cnabk them to
ply the open waters of Ihc riser' and
sounds without having to depend on a
tugboat to get from place to place.
The vessels were approximately «me
hundred and twenty -live feet in length
and were flat-bottom, to
to ply shallow met
They also were narrow, considering
their length, to allow them to pass
through narrow draw-bridges and
creeks. Some had graceful lines from
is, before and just after 1900, there
were several prominent wealthy peo¬
ple living in New Bern and Elizabeth
City by the name of Blades.
Г1им
brothers formed a lumber business un¬
der tltc trade name of The Blades
Lumber Co. This company operated
a large sawmill in New Bern and a
large planing mill in Elizabeth City,
where the rough lumber was manu¬
factured into various kinds of finished
lumber for building purposes.
The Blades Lumber Co had one of
these rants named "Ivy Blades.” She
was used to freight the rough lumber
from the New Bern sawmill to the
the bow alt to the foremast. The 'ides
would then straighten out like the sides
о
I a barn to the aft or stern end of the
boat
They had three lower masts
the foremast, mainmast, and
ma»t The sails were foresail,
and 'pankcrsail. There
two or more jibsails forward of the
foremast, the forestaysail and the
standing jib.
The accommodation for the captain
and other white men of tin- crew was
a cabin in live .ift or stern end of the
boat. In the forward end around the
foremast wus a home built above the
deck This house was the living quar¬
ter» for the colored men of the crew.
It alto was used for cooking and serv¬
ing the meals. The barge-typr build,
and bating only three
gave these boat.» the name '•ram.”
Around the turn of the century, t
ТИС
BTATC. S9. I9SS
planing mill in Elizabeth City. At
times when the wind was unfavorable
and Ihc "Ivy Blades” would arrive at
Elizabeth City with a load of lumber,
they would anchor her on the -flats."
an anchorage in the wider pari of the
harbor, and a tugboat would pull her
to the wharf at the mill. Other times,
with the wind favorable, the "Ivy
Blades” would sail past the wharves
of Elizabeth City, where the river is
not more than two hundred yards
wide, right on to liter mill. It was In¬
teresting to see a large sailing vessel
with sails set, sailing past the wharves
near enough that the crew could talk
with people on the wharf.
A sad and gruesome thing happened
on one of the “Ivy Blades’* trips to
Elizabeth City Captain Frank Mann
•as the captain and Captain Alex
Mann was the mate on the ”lvy
(Continued on page 17)
Heritage Forever
Thy testimonies ha\e I taken at an
heritage forever, for they are the re-
taking ol my heart. — Psalm 119:11.
No one who lives thoughtfully in this
advancing Twentieth Century cun hi
unmindful of the marvels of progress
all about us. It is astounding what a
scientific civilization has produced.
But the equally thoughtful person
will not find conceit in this observa¬
tion. Rather, there will be a sense of
pride in the part that was father to the
present. There will be a fresh con¬
sciousness of Ihc debt we owe lo
history — a debt to be paid only by
fuithcr progress.
A truly great North Carolinian who
has this consciousness with a consum¬
ing passion Is Mrs. Charles
Л.
Cannon.
For years she has been an inde¬
fatigable worker, investing Ivor keen
intellect, her dynamic energy, her per¬
suasive personality, and her material
wealth in the preservation of those bit*
of culture the past deposited in the
mold of Tar Heel life and thought.
God gives us possessions — material,
social, spiritual. They are the sum to¬
tal of our stewardship. All of present-
day life is better when we are good
stewards Others are helped. Life
seems more logical, more hopeful,
more demanding, when we lake Che
testimonies of God s care through the
ages "as an inheritance forever, lor
they aie the rejoicing of my heart "
— C. Silvester Green.
P. P. LEVENTIS
AND COMPANY, INC.
Wholesale Fruits
and Produce
GASTONIA. N. C
Since 1913. when this well known
wholesale firm was organized by
P. P. Irventb. Andrew S. Trains
•ml John -S. Pcichlos. their repo
ration (or dependability and *rvfc«
13
