European Ship Rigging in the Age of Discovery (1418-1620)
July 8, 2026 - 7pm
Bath Freight Shed
Jim Nelson, Author and Maine's First Ship Chief Rigger
Virginia’s masts, sails, and lines, her “rigging,” might seem primitive to modern eyes, but they are the result of a thousand years of European sailing ship design and evolution. And even by those standards, Virginia is unique among historic sailing vessels. Maine’s First Ship’s lead rigger Jim Nelson will discuss the centuries of development that led to ships like Virginia and the qualities that make our ship so unusual, as well as the research, design, and building of the rig that graces today’s reconstruction.
This is the fifth lecture of eight in the 2026 Summer Lecture Series. The lectures will be held on Wednesday evenings at the Bath Freight Shed (27 Commercial St, Bath Maine). The recording will be available below and on YouTube shortly after the lecture.
The lectures are free, but if you consider them valuable, please donate to Maine’s First Ship in person or online.
Jim Nelson expressed an interest in boats from a young age by building a skipjack in ninth grade and a canoe while in high school. He attended U. Mass Amherst for two years before transferring to UCLA to become a film director. He found work aboard the Golden Hinde, where he met his future wife, Lisa Page. In 1992, Jim completed his first novel, By Force of Arms. He and Lisa married the next year. He currently lives in Harpswell with Lisa and their four children. Jim runs the Rigging Crew for Maine’s First Ship and continues to write full-time. He has published over twenty-five books of both fiction and nonfiction.