Schooner Jennie R. Dubois ready for launching, Willow Point, West Mystic

Title supplied by cataloger. Probably photographed by Everett A. Scholfield, a professional photographer who worked primarily in Mystic and New London from 1865-1913. The Jennie R. Dubois was the largest vessel ever built in Mystic. Her net tonnage was 2,227; her dimensions were 249 x 46 x 20.7 feet. She was launched February 11, 1902. Named for a Rhode Island Supreme Court judge's wife, the Jennie R. Dubois was built to carry coal or lumber. Her short working life ended when she was rammed and sunk by a German steamship off Block Island in 1903 William K. Holmes and his son Charles D. Holmes formed the Holmes Shipbuilding Company in 1900. Their yard was at Willow Point, on the site of the former Maxson, Fish & Co. The Jennie R. Dubois was the only coasting schooner built by the company, which reorganized under the name Holmes Motor Company in 1903, producing small marine engines and vessels, including yachts and "self-righting" lifesaving surf boats used by the United States Life-Saving Service. The company was sold in 1916.