OLD LYME — We reported back in November 2020 that Old Lyme First Selectman Tim Griswold had launched a campaign to raise funds to move a boat named the ‘Mervin F. Roberts’ from Old Lyme to Kittery Pont, Maine.
We noted then that we had connected Griswold with Samuel ‘Sam’ Reid, who serves as president of the non-profit Wood Island Life Saving Station Association (WILSSA) of Kittery, Maine. This organization is currently working on a major project to restore the 112-year-old life saving station, which was originally part of the US Life Saving Service (a forerunner of the US Coast Guard.)
Reid said recently in an email to Griswold, “The story of how WILSSA found and then bought the 1930s wooden rowing boat, the Mervin F. Roberts, this past fall is really interesting. It is a very rare US Coast Guard rescue craft, just like those that were at Wood Island Station. Learning the history of the boat, and how it related to Wood Island, was like taking on a puzzle or a scavenger hunt. We didn’t know what we would find, but in the end, it was really special.”
Reid then noted, “The story was so cool that WILSSA decided to have a short movie made so we could let everyone know.” The professionally-produced movie lasts 25 minutes and we are delighted to share the link with our readers so that they may view it at their leisure..
The movie describes the fascinating tale of how a random Facebook advertisement by a man selling a boat in Essex, Conn., connected our own Mervin Roberts of Old Lyme to WILSSA with steps along the way via Olwen Logan at LymeLine.com, Ben Clarkson, who previously lived in Old Lyme and ran The River School, and Tim Griswold, all of whom are mentioned in the movie.
Another wonderful piece in the puzzle, which is included in the movie, is an Oct. 31, 2020 visit by Reid and a videographer to Mr. Roberts’s home in Old Lyme. There is a passage in the movie depicting Mr. Roberts detailing to Reid the history of the boat and how it came to be named after him.
As many readers will know, sadly, Mr. Roberts passed away Dec. 30 at age 98.
We are delighted to report now that 19 local admirers of Mervin Roberts, including the Old Lyme Fire Department (OLFD), donated a total of $6,875.00 toward the acquisition of the boat and the cost to transport her to Kittery, Maine.
Mr. Roberts served as Chaplain of the OLFD for more than 50 years and his poignant graveside service at Duck River Cemetery in Old Lyme was preceded by a procession through the town led by a fire-truck bearing Mr. Roberts’s coffin.
Reid explains in his email to Griswold that the boat is to live in Wood Island Station as part of the maritime museum WILSSA plans to operate there. It will travel into and out of the building on the soon-to-be-restored marine railway.
He notes, “A massive restoration has begun for this lovely old boat and she is expected to be back in the water late this [2021] summer,” adding, “Restoring and reusing Wood Island Station, of course, are WILSSA’s goals. But having a historically accurate rescue craft that is fully operational at the Station will take this project to an even more remarkable level.”
Reid states, “There are no other life saving stations in the USA with an operational marine railway and historic rescue craft.”
The “historic rescue craft” in question is the Mervin F. Roberts. What a wonderful tribute to an amazing man, who we remember so fondly — especially at this time of year since this will be the first year that he will not be here to give the Homily at Old Lyme’s Memorial Day Parade — a tradition he continued right up to and including last year, even though there was no parade last year.
If readers would like to add to the local fundraising effort to restore the boat, they may donate at this link or send a tax-deductible contribution to Wood Island Life Saving Station Assoc., P.O. Box 11, Kittery Point, Maine 03905.
Here is a history of the Wood Island Life Saving Station reprinted from the WILSSA website.
At the mouth of the Piscataqua River in Kittery Point, Maine a graying old structure of unknown purpose and history was slowly crumbing on a small island.
The Wood Island Life Saving Station has stood watch for 112 years. It housed men, brave “surfmen”, that were part of the US Life Saving Service (a forerunner of the US Coast Guard), who would wait with small rowing boats to go out to help mariners in distress in terrible conditions year round.
The owner of the 1908 Station, the Town of Kittery, tried to demolish the unfortunate place a half dozen times after ignoring its basic maintenance for decades.
Our charity, the Wood Island Life Saving Station Association (WILSSA), formed in 2011 to oppose that demolition and offer to raise all of the funds and expertise to undertake a historically accurate restoration.
We are making outstanding progress. After five years of construction, and $3.8 million so far, the entire building has been cleaned of hazardous materials, the structural elements rebuilt, the exterior restored and both the north and south sea walls and the historic shed rebuilt.
We are working hard on a new pier and a restored marine railway.
A historically accurate rescue boat from the 1930s has recently been secured.
Editor’s Note: The WILSSA website offers links to a number of videos that tell the story of the extraordinary efforts of the charity to restore both the building and the ‘Mervin F. Roberts,’ rebuild the marine railway line, and create and open the maritime museum to the public.
This is an absolutely wonderful story, and the accompanying video is very stirring, especially to a semi- pro historian like Tom. Perhaps the project to restore the more than century – old Wood Island Life Saving Station in Kittery, Maine can also provide some inspiration to re-start and complete our own U.S. Coast Guard Museum, which, unfortunately, seems “in irons”. Concerns about the remoteness of Fort Trumbull pale in comparison to what this group has accomplished on Wood Island. We both regret that we never had the opportunity to wish Mr. Roberts “fair winds and following seas”.