Howard Irving Chapelle was an American naval architect, and curator of maritime history

Maritime history

Maritime history is the study of human activity at sea. It covers a broad thematic element of history that often uses a global approach, although national and regional histories remain predominant...

 at the Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

, Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

. In addition, he authored many books and articles books on maritime history and marine architecture.

Biography

From 1919, Chapelle worked as a marine apprentice and designer for a number of shipbuilders. After 1936, he went into business for himself, and later served as head of the New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 section of the Historic American Merchant Marine Survey, a New Deal

New Deal

The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...

 project designed to research American naval history and staffed by unemployed marine architects.

During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, Chapelle served in the United States Army Transportation Corps

United States Army Transportation Corps

The Transportation Corps was established 31 July 1942 by Executive Order 9082. The Transportation Corps is a combat service support branch of the U.S. Army, and was headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia, but has now moved to Fort Lee, Virginia. The Transportation Corps is responsible for the...

 ship and boatbuilding program. In 1950, he ventured to England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 where he researched colonial ship design on a Guggenheim fellowship

Guggenheim Fellowship

Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...

. In 1956/57, he served the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization

Food and Agriculture Organization

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...

 as a consultant on fishing boat construction to the government of Turkey. Upon returning to America, he was appointed Division of Transportation curator of the National Museum of History and Technology. Ten years later, in 1967, he stepped down as curator to assume the role of Senior Historian. He retired in 1971, accepting the title of Historian Emeritus.

Works

Chapelle was a small-boat enthusiast and sailor. He felt that inexpensive yachts based on traditional workboats were the most practical way to go sailing and designed a number of small boats. His article on a 14-foot Chesapeake Sharpie Skiff is typical of many of his articles.

His book American Small Sailing Craft (1951) is considered the classic among small-boat builders and historians. In it he documented many fast-vanishing working boats.

His other books include:

• Yacht Designing and Planning (1936) W. W. Norton & Company, ISBN 0-393-03756-8
• Boatbuilding: A Complete Handbook of Wooden Boat Construction (1941) W.W. Norton & Company Inc.
• The History of American Sailing Ships
• The History of the American Sailing Navy: The Ships and Their Development, W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. (1949), ISBN 1568522223.
• The Search for Speed Under Sail: 1700-1855 (1967) W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
• The Baltimore Clipper
• The American Fishing Schooners 1825-1935 (1973) W. W. Norton & Company Inc., ISBN 0-393-03123-3