Chesapeake Bay Log Canoes and Bugeyes

Rating:
Summary: the best book written on the subject
Review: As a Chesapeake Bay native and avid log canoe sailor I found this book well-researched and amply illustrated. It is a bit dated, but no other work is as comprehensive. Model builders will find some line drawings, but HAMMS and Chapelle's "Small Sailing Craft" are probably better sources for that specific aspect of the working Bay craft. I would recommend this book for canoe/skipjack afficianados, modelers looking for an interesting alternative to square riggers, and marine history buffs who are not familiar with the genre. Brewington's narrative includes information that would be of interest to just about anyone interested in the Bay and its colorful history.

Rating:
Summary: Well researched, very detailed
Review: This book is a compilation and expansion of two smaller works - one on log canoes and the other on the history of the bugeye. It is extremely well researched and includes detailed drawings / plans. Since the original pamphlet drafts date to the 1940s, the author had access to the actual builders and designers as well as to those that captained the boats either tonging or dredging for oysters. I read it from the perspective of someone interested in the history and culture of the Bay and thought the bugeye section was great. Since a stated purpose of the book is to capture specifications and how to build type information, the casual reader will probably find some of it somewhat dry.