There’s a reason that so many Chesapeake workboats are named for mothers, sisters, daughters and wives—it’s because they are more than just boats. Painted on a transom, or mounted and carved, their names—Ida May, Martha, Sandy B—reflect the ancient maritime perception of boats not as workaday tools but as trusted family. Like their namesakes back on land, these hard working ladies are reliable partners in work or play, across waters smooth or stormy. These boats have souls.
Yet, for most of her life, Shirley M. had no name. “She was just the big boat, as opposed to the little boat,” said Bryer Davis, granddaughter of George A. Miller, Jr., Shirley M.’s boatbuilder. “He didn’t actually name her until my grandparent’s 50th wedding anniversary, when he named her for my grandmother.” But Miller’s pragmatism about naming the deadrise he built from scratch belied a lifelong relationship with his workboat—one that celebrated family, friends, good times, and above all, the bounty and connection provided by the Chesapeake Bay.
Miller grew up in Eastport, a fourth-generation Annapolitan, living by the water’s rhythms. At that time, Eastport was still a working maritime village, and like most of his neighbors, Miller’s family made their living off the water. “They were just resourceful and scrappy,” Davis said. His grandmother, Mary Ann Brown Lewis—lovingly known as “FatMom”—ran a boat railway next to the Trumpy boatyard, hauling out and repairing workboats.
The Chesapeake was Miller’s birthright. For his tenth birthday, he received his first boat—a small rowboat built by his father—which he used to explore Spa and Back Creek, Huck Finn-style. “Growing up here, he made the most of what the Bay is,” Davis said. “It was food and entertainment, a source of income—it was just a way of living.” The Bay even served as the backdrop for a little romance: Miller courted his future bride, Shirley, in that very boat.
Making things and carpentry were in his blood, and Miller eventually took up building as his trade. By the late 1950s, with a growing family, he channeled both skills and his love of the Chesapeake into a new endeavor—a classic wooden deadrise built in his backyard. Miller was naturally thrifty, incorporating reused materials into the build. “We always called him the original recycler,” said Davis. Scraps from homebuilding, house paint, and a few unused remnants from the Trumpy yard made their way into the hull and decking. By 1960, the “big boat” was afloat.
Looking back through family photos, the launch of the still-unnamed Shirley M. marked a watershed moment. Decades of pleasure cruises, Blue Angels airshows, summer swims, 4th of July fireworks, and family gatherings followed. In the photos, the family grows—grandkids first toddling, then leaping overboard into the Bay—and Shirley M. is always the backdrop, just another member of the family.
Over the years, Miller maintained his boat, hauling, scraping, and painting to ready her for each season. As he aged, his children and eventually Davis helped maintain her for increasingly rare cruises. In time, they kept her afloat so Miller could simply look out his window and see her at the dock. “Shirley M. aged with him,” Davis said. “They were two old companions aging hand-in-hand.” In 2023, at 94, Miller passed away. Shirley M. still floated faithfully at the end of her pier.
The family began discussing her future. The boat needed major repairs, and Miller’s children debated options—selling, donating, or salvaging her. “That just broke my heart,” Davis said. Having slowly taken on more responsibility—helping with repairs, driving the boat—the idea of restoring Shirley M. herself began to grow in Davis. After family conversations and a few reality checks, Davis committed to the project, driven by stubborn tenacity and the belief “that there was no other option. This boat needed to stay in the family.”
Shirley M. needed a full restoration, and Davis needed the right builder. She turned to a 2018 Chesapeake Bay Magazine guide and discovered Elzey Custom Boats in Cambridge, Maryland. Run by boatbuilder Dennis Elzey, the shop specializes in deadrises like Shirley M. Davis felt an immediate connection to Elzey, a native Hoopers Islander whose pragmatism and hands-on know-how reminded her of Miller. “At one point we were looking at a repair that only my grandfather could have understood, and I asked Dennis if he felt like he knew my grandfather, and he said, ‘Cut from the same cloth, I believe.’ That affirmed that Dennis was our guy.”
On a March day in 2024, Shirley M. limped across the Bay on an improbable four-hour journey from Bay Ridge to Cambridge to begin her next chapter. Through extensive repairs, Elzey “peeled back the onion” of Miller’s unique building style. Together, Davis and Elzey discovered her grandfather’s problem-solving, meticulous craftsmanship, and creativity—deepening Davis’s appreciation for his work and legacy.
It took Elzey eight months to complete the restoration. Davis and her family visited often to check progress and took on small projects at home—repainting the nameboard, restoring portholes, cleats, and brass fittings.
That summer, Shirley M.—the grande dame of Bay Ridge—was honored in float form as Grand Marshal of the 4th of July parade. All eight of Miller’s grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren walked behind her, with life-sized cutouts of Miller and his wife in place of pride at the helm. It was the first summer in 55 years that Shirley M. didn’t dock at Lake Ogleton. It would be the only one she missed.
This summer, Shirley M. returns to Spa Creek and the Severn River for her 56th season—a tribute to Miller’s craftsmanship, Elzey’s skill, and an enduring love of the Chesapeake. “Sharing the boat, letting other people enjoy it, letting other people fish and crab or cruise was really important to him. And I feel that same sentiment,” Davis said. “The experience of Annapolis, if you have access to the water versus if you don’t, is like two different towns. I feel really strongly that sharing this boat, getting people out on the water and seeing the Bay in a way they never have before—that’s the whole point.”
Shirley M., Davis, and her family will make good on that promise soon. As new members of the Antique and Classic Boat Society, they’ll bring Shirley M. to the Antique & Classic Boat Festival at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, June 13–15, 2025. Stop by and see her—living her best life in a new chapter. A classic Chesapeake deadrise, welcoming you aboard like family.
Editor’s Note: The 37th annual Antique & Classic Boat Festival should be an especially memorable one this Father’s Day weekend, carrying the theme of “Boats Made Popular through TV and Film’’. Vintage sport boats with Hollywood ties, such as the Glastron Scimitar (Moonraker), Chris Craft (On Golden Pond), Thunderbird (Flipper), and Hacker (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade).
As one of the largest classic boat shows in the Mid-Atlantic region, it will show off more than 100 cruisers, runabouts and racers. A “Field of Dreams” features classic and antique boats for sale. At the accompanying Coastal Arts Fair, you can shop for unique works of maritime art. A nautical flea market, children’s activities, and free boat rides round out the festival activities. For the boating history buffs, there is a variety of talks and exhibits with intriuging subjects like of Army & Navy Rescue Boats of WWII, Rum Running off the Chesapeake Bay, and Chesapeake Boats On Screen.
An irresistible “Before and After Boats: Side-By-Side,” exhibit on Sunday will feature unrestored boats next to finished classics of the same type. Also on Sunday, Tilghman Island Seafood will give a special presentation and tasting. Find the full schedule of history talks here.
