2011– 2012 Annual Report - Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

Mission
The mission of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is to inspire an understanding of and
appreciation for the rich maritime heritage of the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal reaches,
together with the artifacts, cultures, and connections between this place and its people.
Vision
The vision of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is to be the premier maritime museum
for studying, exhibiting, preserving, and celebrating the important history and culture of
the largest estuary in the United States, the Chesapeake Bay.
• We will be acknowledged as the leading center for education, exhibition, and
preservation of Chesapeake Bay maritime cultures.
• We will inspire cultural stewardship by preserving, documenting, and sharing stories,
artifacts, skills, and the traditions of the generations of people who have lived and worked
in the Chesapeake Bay region.
• We will emphasize how the connections between people and the Bay’s natural
environment have shaped unique, traditional cultures.
• We will provide opportunities for visitors to make connections between past human
activities, present conditions, and future possibilities.
Board of
Governors
2011-2012
CG Appleby, Chair
Alan R. Griffith, Vice Chair
Joseph E. Peters, Vice Chair
Tom D. Seip, Treasurer
Mark S. Nestlehutt, Secretary
Paul Berry
Richard J. Bodorff
Harry W. Burton
Frederic N. Cross
William S. Dudley
David E. Dunn
Jocelyn W. Eysymontt
Anna W. Fichtner
Howard S. Freedlander
Dagmar D. P. Gipe
James P. Harris
E. Brooke Harwood, Jr.
Christopher A. Havener
Francis Hopkinson
Pamela Jana
R. Douglas Jurrius
Richard H. Kimberly
Peter M. Kreindler
William C. Millar
Geoffrey F. Oxnam
Bruce A. Ragsdale
Henry H. Stansbury
Benjamin C. Tilghman, Jr.
Richard C. Tilghman, Jr.
Alfred Tyler II
Barbara Viniar
Langley R. Shook, President
EMERITI
Richard T. Allen
Margaret D. Keller
Breene M. Kerr
Charles L. Lea, Jr.
D. Ted Lewers
Fred C. Meendsen
John C. North II
Sumner Parker
Robert A. Perkins
James K. Peterson
Norman H. Plummer
John J. Roberts
Henry H. Spire
James E. Thomas
Joan Darby West
Donald G. Whitcomb
Message from the
President & ChairmAn
Langley R. Shook
President
CG Appleby
Chairman, 2011-2012
Inspire, educate, preserve, and belong––these four words
have graced the front of our past three annual reports and
serve as continuous reminders of why we are here, and why
this place matters. By inspiring and educating the next
generation, preserving the legacies and artifacts that define
the Chesapeake region, and fostering a sense of belonging
and responsibility, we encourage people to be stewards of the
Chesapeake Bay. We continue to be humbled by the outpouring
of support from you, our members and donors, and
remain deeply committed to ensuring your charitable donations
are put to good use.
For this 2011-2012 annual report, you’ll find stories of
people like you who care deeply about this place and are
supporters of the Museum. You’ll also find financial
information, our honor roll of donors, and a chance to look
ahead at what the Museum is offering in the coming months.
You can expect to receive your next issue of The Chesapeake Log
in February.
Between May 2011 and April 2012 (FY 2011-2012),
the Museum continued to build membership and increase
attendance. Your gifts to the 2011-2012 Annual Fund set yet
another all time record and allowed us to expand programs,
open new and engaging exhibits, and make much needed
improvements to campus. Two highlights made possible
by your support were the opening of our newest exhibits,
Gunning Among Friends: Chesapeake Waterfowl Hunting Clubs,
and Push and Pull: Life on Chesapeake Bay Tugboats.
With transportation a large part of the Chesapeake story,
the Tug exhibit is regarded as the most in-depth exhibit on
Chesapeake tugs in existence. Far beyond the high level of
interest created, the exhibit is exemplary of the authenticity
this Museum brings to all its exhibits, boat restoration, and
educational programs. With your help, the Museum has
carved out a special niche and serves as a model for what visitors want––original research
and first-hand accounts that can be found nowhere else. What’s compelling about the
stories we tell is not just the content of the Museum’s collections, it's more the context of
how they fit into our history and our lives that make them relevant and important.
This would be impossible without your continued support.
Our year was marked by growing audiences and member engagement for both our
signature events and special programming. The restoration of the skipjack Rosie Parks continues
to draw visitors, and has reunited four generations of Parks family members at our
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