I'm posting this and will keep adjusting the date if necessary to keep it "pinned" so to speak as a resource for readers who want to learn more about some of the references in AGS.
If you're trying to envision the Baltimore clipper that plays a key part in the book, check these out:
It's been a busy past couple of weekends for me! I did some more tall ship viewing at the Chestertown, Maryland Downrigging Festival, and got a lot of writing done, to boot, as I found staying in this historic town very inspiring:
I also attended the JAFF Writer-Reader Get-Together, and had a fantastic time. It was so great to get to meet up with readers, bloggers, and fellow writers, and talk about Austenesque writing and Jane Austen the whole weekend. I dressed up for tea, as I love to do:
They're gauging interest for a 2020 session, so if this sounds like fun but you weren't able to make it this year, please register!
Well, as it turns out I made that trip to Baltimore sooner than expected! I learned that tall ship Lynx was going to be there along with Pride of Baltimore II. They're both types of schooners known as Baltimore clippers, and very much of interest to me at this point in my research. Still better, they were tied up at Fell's Point, the historic seaport and shipbuilding area of Baltimore, which turned out these schooners by the hundreds in the early 19th century. So I decided to go up and do a day sail on Pride of Baltimore II, since I'd been planning for a long time to do one on Lynx at another event a few weeks from now.
It was very weird to be going on a research trip that's only an hour away rather than a 7-8 hour flight. Unfortunately what I learned is that they were also doing a festival in Fell's Point, and it was a HUGE festival. Apparently it started as a way to raise money to keep Fell's Point from being razed for an interstate highway, but now that that threat is passed, it's just celebratory. So the views of a lot of the buildings were blocked by tents, although I was able to see some good examples of the architecture on the streets farther back. I think I'm going to pop up again at some point and do a history tour and get a better sense of what the harbour-front buildings look like normally.
Even though I didn't have to go all the way to England for this one, I did still manage to find the super-leaning old houses!
Some examples of the Georgian (called Federal-style here since we threw off George III) architecture of Fell's Point.
More house examples. There's no attempt whatsoever at the sort of architectural uniformity you see in places like London, in terrace houses. It looks like each one was built independently, to varying heights and styles.
One thing that was strangely consistent was these passages, which all led to a sort of rear yard for all of the terraced houses.
Lynx and Pride of Baltimore II tied up. I love moments like this where there are enough historic elements to mentally edit out the rest and envision this as a scene 200 years ago.
The sail was great, particularly getting to see Lynx with a full spread of canvas from the vantage point of another ship. It really gives a sense of how beautiful and fast these ships were, with their provocatively raked masts and sharp hulls.
Lynx looking absolutely lovely.
Lynx seen from Pride of Baltimore. That's Fort McHenry on the left, of Star Spangled Banner fame.
I also found a nice pub serving cask ale that was not too crowded with festival-goers, and made some good progress on the journal I wrote about at the end of my last post, so in a way it was like a little miniature English trip, except I made it by local commuter rail. All in all it was a very fun and productive time!
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