Historical society to unveil model sailing ships

NORWALK — The Firelands Historical Society will have an unveiling ceremony June 4 of three model sailing ships built by world renown model ship builder Robert Bruckshaw. Bruckshaw lived in Norwalk from 1971 until his death on Sept. 17, 1994 and his reputation as an artist and master craftsman spans marine and maritime museums world-wide as well as numerous nautical publications. Bruckshaw spent 40 years as an amateur and professional model ship builder and is famous for his accuracy and attention to detail. He spent hundreds of hours in museum archives and even interviewed descendants of ship builders and anyone related to the ship he was building. Throughout his life, Bruckshaw worked as a watch and cabinet maker, a blacksmith, millwright and draftsman, all careers which required the same skills needed to build model ships. And his ships were incredible! Several have been on display in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England and the Naval Division of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. And now three of them are the prized possessions of the Firelands Historical Society Museum. Christie Herbst, the president of the Chautauqua County (New York) Historical Society and former resident of Huron, along with the board of directors of the Chautauqua County Historical Society, inquired if the museum of Bruckshaw's hometown would be interested in obtaining the model HMS Serapis, a 44-gun ship c.1779 which was currently displayed in the McClurg Museum in Westfield, N.Y. Co-curator of the Firelands Historical Society Museum Diane Meyer and its board of trustees agreed upon accepting this new addition to their museum. One week later, Meyer received a second inquiry from Herbst. A friend of hers, David Hansen from Jamestown, N.Y., had acquired two other ships made by Bruckshaw many years ago. Hansen wanted to downsize his collection and was very interested in donating two model ships, the HMS Falkland, and the Boston, to the Firelands Historical Society as well. The idea of having these famous model ships returned to Norwalk proved to be irresistable. Arrangements were made to have all three ships embark on one final journey home to Norwalk, Ohio on Nov. 9, 2021, where they are currently housed in the Laning-Young Research facility. The Firelands Historical Society has begun a campaign to build a $1.8-million addition which will feature, among its many exhibits, an extensive military collection that will now include Bruckshaw's model ships. The public is invited to the unveiling ceremony from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 4,. The event will include personal reflections from family and friends of Robert Bruckshaw, sharing their memories about his life-long love of model ship building. Norwalk Mayor David Light will honor the family by declaring June 4, 2022 as Robert Bruckshaw Day. Refreshments will be served, and after the presentation of the ships, the public is invited to tour the museum campus.