There is scarcely a river, creek, or slough in the Chesapeake Bay Country that Robert H. Burgess (1913–2003) did not explore with his camera. Known to many as Dean of the Chesapeake, Robert “Bob” Burgess knew the Chesapeake Bay in its older, more primitive, and pleasant way of life. He saw the era of commercial sail and steam fading and undertook to document and preserve bay watercraft through photography. Without this labor of love, most of the sailing vessels in his book would have passed on with no photographic record of their existence.
Baltimore-born, Burgess joined the staff of the Mariners’ Museum in Newport News in 1941, where he became curator of exhibits and was later named curator of publications. He was a member of the Steamship Historical Society of America, on the Board of Governors of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, and a trustee of the Calvert Marine Museum and Chesapeake Bay Foundation. In 2000, The Chesapeake Maritime Museum presented Robert H. Burgess the coveted Chesapeake Bay Heritage Award in recognition of “his significant contributions to the preservation of the cultural and maritime heritage of the Chesapeake Bay.” Among his legacies are the many articles and books about the Chesapeake Bay and its craft, illustrated with his photographs. His photos are widely recognized for their documentary and artistic quality.
Naval architect William A. Fox was born in Newport News, Virginia, at the height of the World War II shipbuilding program. He grew up in Newport News and owes his interest in maritime history to his mother, Katherine Johnson Fox, who worked at the Mariners’ Museum library, and to his father, Erwin A. Fox, Jr., who was a merchant mariner, shipbuilder, and boater. William A. Fox graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1965 and received his master’s degree in Urban Studies from Old Dominion University in 1979. He has worked for Newport News Shipbuilding; for Esso (Exxon) International in New York, Italy, and Spain; and for Stanwick International in Iran. Since 1979 he has been associated with John J. McMullen Associates in Newport News.
He began his writing career with a book chapter on ship modeling in 1975, and a history of the tug Dorothy (Newport News Hull No. 1) in 1976. In 1986 he researched and wrote Always Good Ships, a comprehensive history of all of the ships built at the Newport News shipyard since its founding in 1886. He has contributed many articles on maritime history to magazines and newspapers, and has edited several books including Chesapeake Sailing Craft.