Around Annapolis: Pride of Baltimore II a Downtown Attraction

With an old-fashioned pipe in his mouth and a Folgers coffee can filled with paint in his hand, Nate Hathaway dangled from a rope underneath the Pride of Baltimore II docked in Annapolis.

The War of 1812-era replica ship celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. It's currently docked in downtown Annapolis through Friday, playing host to a series of educational programs. 

Hathaway said the ship and its crew of 12 sail around the region and talk about the vessel and the history behind these types of ships. 

Perched beneath the ship's prow, his flip-flops keeping him balanced along a thin rope, Hathaway was adding a layer of paint to the bottom of the ship. On a cloudless day with a strong breeze, it was a good day for it, he said.

"Couldn't ask for much better. Maybe a little less wind," he said.

While docked, Hathaway and his team were busy performing some basic maintenance on the vessel. It might be the last time the crew gets some free time to do so in a while, he said.

Beyond being a visual reminder of maritime history, the ship is also a good anchor for a school field trip, which dozens of students from Montgomery County Schools were taking advantage of on Wednesday afternoon.

The Pride II was commissioned in 1988 as a sailing memorial after the original Pride sunk during a white squall off the coast of Puerto Rico in 1986, taking her captain and three crew members with her, according to the ship's website. Both ships were built in the Inner Harbor as reproductions of 1812-era topsail schooners, known as Baltimore Clippers, which played a large role in the War of 1812.

For more information on the Pride of Baltimore II, visit its official website. 

If you want to see the ship before it heads out, be sure to visit City Dock in downtown Annapolis before the weekend.