1930s

On December 25, 1929, the story of Mystic Seaport began with the incorporation of the Marine Historical Association by the three founders: Carl C. Cutler, a lawyer from a seafaring family who had made a voyage under sail himself; Charles K. Stillman, a New York doctor who had returned to Mystic to live in the house of his grandfather, shipbuilder Clark Greenman; and Edward Bradley, a local silk manufacturer who had made a voyage to China as a teenager.

In 1931 funds were acquired to help the Association buy the defunct textile mill behind Dr. Stillman’s house, and in September of 1931 the Museum’s first exhibit hall was set up in what is now the Wendell Building. Earlier that year, Dr. Stillman gave the Museum its first boat, the sandbagger racing sloop Annie. The public was first invited to the Museum in the summer of 1934, with one exhibit open on Thursday and Saturday afternoons. Second and third exhibit buildings opened in 1935 and 1938.

Timeline

1929 25 December ~ Edward E. Bradley, Carl C. Cutler, and Dr. Charles K. Stillman meet to incorporate the Marine Historical Association.
1930 3 September ~ First Annual Meeting, held at the home of Dr. Stillman.
1931 The Museum’s first vessel, sandbagger Annie, presented by Dr. Stillman.
9 September ~ The Museum’s first exhibit opens in Assembly Hall (Wendell Building) for second Annual Meeting of Members.
Museum property consists of 2 acres.
1933 Spring ~ Economic crisis of the Great Depression leads to President Roosevelt’s “New Deal.”
1934 July – August ~ First public exhibits on Thursday and Saturday afternoons.
1935 Summer attendance 184 (Admission $.25)
1936 The Merchant Marine Act marks federal support for a strong American Merchant Marine.
1938 21 September ~ Unnamed hurricane devastates southern N. England causing severe damage to the Charles W. Morgan which at the time was berthed in sand at Colonel Edward H.R. Green’s Round Hill estate in South Dartmouth, MA.
1939 Spring ~ Benj. F. Packard paneling and artifacts acquired before the ship is scuttled in Long Island Sound.
1 July Lighthouse service became part of the U.S. Coast Guard.