Thanks for capturing Ficklen's skill and passion

Thank you for featuring John Ficklen of St. George Island in The Times July 22 edition. It captured his model-making skill, research and enthusiasm.

In Dec. 2001, John finished a commission of the Crescent City, mentioned in your article. This model is on display in the dining room of the Orman House State Park, on view to the approximately 5,000 people who visit the house and enjoy our area’s rich maritime history.

In a letter accompanying the model, John wrote the following:

“The Crescent City was built in 1877 in Northpoint, NY. Her first name was the Tourist. She was a local boat in the New York waters until the late 1880s. After coming to Florida and working the St. John’s River, she arrived in Apalachicola in the early 1890s, and served under Capt. Andy Wing. Some say that, under Capt. Wing’s command, she made over 10,000 trips between Apalachicola, Eastpoint and Carrabelle. She also made excursions to St. George Island. She was retired in the late 1920s when the John Gorrie Memorial Bridge over the Apalachicola River opened and US Highway 98 was built.

“The model was built in my shop on St. George. The hull is from local juniper harvested on the Apalachicola River. The superstructure and deck are of basswood. Most fittings are brass or pewter. The benches on deck are of oak from the United States frigate “Constitution.” The model rests on a piece of heart pine recovered from the Orman Building during renovation. I drew plans from photos, as none of the original plans exist.”

As the community looks forward to the opening of the new headquarters building of the Apalachicola Estuarine Research Reserve in Eastpoint, I was pleased to learn they have commissioned models of the oyster industry for display. Thank you again for the article and John, for your “passion.”

Jan Thomas

Apalachicola