Recommended Reading - Frame-Up! The Story Of The People And Shipyards of Essex, Massachusetts. Ten Pound Island Book Company, Dana Storey 1986. ISBN: 0938459007

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Frame-Up! The Story Of The People And Shipyards of Essex, Massachusetts
By Dana Story

Frame Up by Dana Story

Frame-Up! The Story Of The People And Shipyards of Essex, Massachusetts. Ten Pound Island Book Company, Dana Storey 1986. ISBN: 0938459007

"How unfortunate it is that we must so often wait until something is gone before appreciating it or even being aware of it. Generations of Essex people were born, lived and died amid the sounds of the shipyards: the caulking mallets, the sound of the axe and adze ringing against white oak, the millions of hammer blows, and the shouts of the men. At the time it was a part of their existence, like the air they breathed. Now that it is all gone we realize what a satisfying chorus it was and how silent the town is now." p.26

That paragraph explains why I value this book, re-reading it every few years. Dana Story was a son of Essex, of the Story family of shipwrights. His words include first and second person accounts as well as those stories told by the people of Essex. Although Mr. Story states that his book is not meant to be a scholarly exercise, nonetheless, it is a cultural record of inestimable value.

You don't have to be a ship or boat builder to enjoy this read. Anyone interested in the history of crafts, trades and industries will be unable to put the book down, once begun.

Enjoy,
Gary Roberts