THOMASTON — Since Sept. 2016, the 65-foot Anna has been under construction in the Lyman-Morse boatbuilding barn, on the shores of the St. George River in Thomaston. There, more than 25 local carpenters, painters, varnishers, metal fabricators, draftsmen, electricians, mechanics, riggers and other artisans have moved the sloop from drawings to the cradle, and on April 2, into Travelift slings.

Amidst fanfare and cheers, she slipped slowly into the river, her white hull gleaming and glinting.

The water welcomed her like an old friend, first her keel and then her hull, a cold-molded construction of Douglas fir. With a burst of energy, the bow thrusters and engine added muscle as the new daysailer backed into the tide.

Designed by Stephens Waring Yacht Design, of Belfast, Anna represents much of Maine’s — more specifically, the Midcoast’s — focus on boat craftsmanship and construction. While Robert Stephens and Paul Waring drew and engineered the yacht’s architectural plans in Belfast, they also collaborated with Martha Coolidge, owner of Martha Coolidge Design in Rockland, on the yacht’s interior design.

And in Thomaston, Drew Lyman, president of Lyman-Morse, directed his company to first build a mock-up, and then fine-tune what exactly it was that the owner wanted in a new boat as construction got underway.

Anna, characterized as a “modern classic sloop,” was designed to be an easy daysailer, for taking friends and family on the water, but with berths for six, if longer transports are scheduled.

The mast will accommodate a large mainsail, and the jib can alternate between self-tacking or manually tacking, depending on whether the sailors are racing or poking around the islands.

Anna is to sail up and down the coast, with the seasons, and will be moored in Camden. Next week, after the mast is stepped, Anna is to move from Thomaston to Camden, where sea trials will get underway.

For Lyman-Morse, the construction of Anna goes beyond planking a new vessel into existence. The process now provides the opportunity for the crews to use modeling software to fine-tune the design while the vessel is under construction — and to create efficiencies with fewer mistakes and fixes.

“Stephens Waring Yacht Design delivered a well-developed 3D model to our Lyman-Morse systems team who in turn work out the final build details for production,” said the boatyard in February 2017, as Anna was taking shape. 

“This fine-tuning step sets the process at Lyman Morse apart from the typical boat yard approach. Several designers can work on the same component in real time ironing out details on the desktop rather than on the shop floor, this is the name of the game.... Time-consuming manual placement of critical components is a thing of the past along with shop floor adjustment that would have been common throughout the build process. Now our crew can focus and apply their art and skill at a higher level.”

In the water, Anna draws 6.7 feet, and her beam is 16.10 feet. The mast, made of carbon fiber, is 100 feet tall, and with the jib, the total sail area is 2,040 square feet. The sails were made by North Sails, a global sail making company with lofts along the East Coast, and in Maine, in South Freeport.

“The owner came to us for our expertise in systems engineering and installation; our attention to detail and responsiveness to owners’ requests,” said Drew Lyman, about the project. “In addition, our strength also lies in quality and cost management, both of which are crucial in a project this complex.”

Lyman-Morse constructs power and sailboats at its 11-acre Thomaston location, specializing in composites, advanced composites and aluminum construction. With a workforce of 90, in Thomaston, as well as the Lyman-Morseat Wayfarer Marine boatyard  in Camden, the company is diverse in its talent.

That talent showed up at the waterfront April 2, proud of what they built on the Thomaston shore where vessels, in varying shapes and sizes, have been constructed for 200 years, and counting. Anna was the latest, but not the last, and the crews were smiling.

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657.