HOWB 069 – Interview | Nat Howe of NW Seaport – Wooden Boat Guru and Museologist - 01.10.13

Nat grew up in Seattle and as a young kid was building boat models out of milk cartons, wood, and assorted other materials he could scrounge up. His parents and grandparents owned (and still own) an Allied Seawind 30’ which the family used to explore the Inside Passage around Vancouver Island and the San Juan Islands. When Nate was 10 years old he discovered the 1897 three masted 165ʹ schooner Wawona on Lake Union in Seattle. He fell in love with her and at age 11 built a 5’ model of Wawona. He also built a radio controlled model of the Arthur Foss tug after discovering that historic vessel in Seattle.

Nat attended Beloit College in WI to get his undergraduate degree in Museology. During his college program, he spent one semester at Williams College studying at Mystic Seaport Museum and living on the grounds.

Besides learning about sea shanties and celestial navigation he gained valuable knowledge about museums and historic vessels.

After college Nat was awarded the highly coveted Fulbright Grant to study at the Vasa Museum in Sweden – regarded by many as the premier maritime museum in the world. On display is the Swedish Gallion Vasa – built in 1628 as a double gun deck war boat. She sank 15 minutes into her maiden voyage.

Nat loves his current position as the vessel manager at Northwest Seaport in Seattle, WA. The Seaport’s mission is the: “......preservation and interpretation of maritime heritage of Puget Sound and the Northwest Coast, and the development of maritime-based educational programs and opportunities for the community.”

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You can contact me at woodenboatdan@gmail.com to share your comments, feedback, stories, and wooden boat adventures.

Keep the bright side up and the barnacled side down - Wooden Boat Dan over and out :D

PS Please note this podcast was recorded several years ago - some of the links, email addresses, phone numbers, and promos mentioned are outdated and no longer valid.