Built in 1904, Princess is a very early example of a Chesapeake Bay, deadrise deck boat. Unlike buyboats that were to follow later, the pilothouse on Princess was built on the floor of the hull and the deck was built around it. As well, she had an open hold, The builder, Perry Rogers, is shown on the deck in the photo above. He lived and worked in Shady Side, MD. Princess was used for net fishing and for oystering. She was said to be 40 feet long with an 8-foot beam. She also had a tuck stern, which was an innovation by Mr. Rogers. The above photo is the only one known to exist. The boat itself is long gone.

September, 2022

The first problem with building this boat is the fact that there are no plans. I don't profess to be a naval architect, so drawing my own plans was a bit of a challenge. I was lucky enough to be able to consult with a friend and outstanding ship modeler, Roland Griffin. Over the course of several meetings and phone calls, I came up with a set of plans that we both agreed seemed reasonable. There is, of course, no way to know for sure since the real boat no longer exists. As Roland would often say, "There's no one around anymore who can say we're wrong!" So, perhaps it's best to just call it an example of an early deck boat as inspired by Princess.

August 30, 2022

Molds, keelson, keel, inner stem, and inner transom cut out and laid up on the build board. Got the chine log and a side plank glued on by Sept. 2nd.

Keel & Molds

Keel & Molds

September 4, 2022

Bottom planking is partially completed.

Bottom Planking

Bottom Planking

September 15, 2022

All the planking is done.

Planking

Planking

September 21, 2022

Covering boards and deck beams are all in place.

Deck Beams

Deck Beams

September 22, 2022

Spent the whole day working on the fore and aft bulkheads for the hold. LOTS of angles to deal with!

Fwd Bulkhead

Aft Bulkhead

September 27, 2022

I've been planking the deck the past couple of days. I just got the shoe on the keel this afternoon. Haven't gotten to the stem yet. Next will be the rub rails and coamings.

Deck Planking

Port Side

October 3, 2022

Making some progerss. I have the floor in the hold, the coamings on, and the forepeak cabin built. Stem is also on and I installed a wale along the sheer line. Some sort of rub rail will go in the center of that wale eventually. The hatch on the forepeak cabin has a flat roof. I can't really tell from the photo of Princess whether or not it was rounded to match the deck camber. It's possible. I may wind up re-making that but I'll think about it for a bit.

Floor

Hold & Forepeak Cabin

October 5, 2022

I am unclear about the pilothouse size, so I decided to make a couple of mockups to see if one looked better than the other. I'm currently leaning toward the smaller size but still thinking about it.

Mockups	Mockups
Larger Pilothouse	Smaller Pilothouse

October 8, 2022

After consultation with Roland, I decided I will have to detail the inside of the pilothouse. I didn't want to do blacked-out windows. That meant having to cut a hole in the deck so the pilothouse could sit on the floor of the hull. That, in turn, dictated the height of the pilothouse. I wanted 6 feet of headroom inside at the windows. So the top of the pilothouse will be 4 feet above the deck, which seems right. I'll be leaving the companionway doors and hatch open so you can see down into the pilothouse. And, of course, the windows will be clear allowing at least a limited view through them. As seen in the picture, I have started construction of the house.

Pilothouse

October 12, 2022

I now have the outside of the pilothouse planked but as yet, it is unpainted nor are the windows done. I've been working on the inside for the past couple of days. I decided to not plank the inside. I have no way of knowing if the real boat was planked inside, but it seemed appropriate for this boat. Took an entire morning to make the wheel, but I think it came out OK. There are more details yet to add, of course as well as the roof and the doors.

Pilothouse Interior

Hold & Pilothouse Interior

October 22, 2022

Today, I worked on the prop and rudder. Actually, I worked on the prop yesterday and it took me the better part of the day, but in the end, I wasn't happy with it, so I decided to re-do it this morning. Had the new one done in less than two hours. After that, I made the sleeve bearing, the rudder, and the rudder support. Nothing is attached yet since things need to get painted first. I've been working on the pilothouse as well. I now have the windows in and the outside painted. Still a few more details to add inside before I glue on the roof..

Prop and Rudder

Prop and Rudder

October 29, 2022

A fair amount completed in the past week. The hull is painted and rails are on. Forepeak cabin is glued down to the deck but the pilothouse is still not glued in nor is its roof glued down. There are some details I'll want to add to the inside of the pilothouse and it may be better to be able to hold it in my hands. Although not shown in the pictures, I made some changes to the location of the prop to make it better oriented with the rudder.

Progress

Hold & Progress

December, 2022

I finished this model a while back. Can't recall exactly when now. I have not been working on the website lately, so I haven't updated the information. Here are some pics of the finished boat. Meanwhile, I've gone back to working on the tug Delaware.

Finished	Finished
Finished	Finished
Finished	Finished

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Last Updated: January 11, 2023