Mariquita, meaning 'ladybird' in Spanish, is a 19-metre gaff cutter, and was built in 1911 by William Fife. Her overall length is 125 feet. From 1967 to 1973 Mariquita was...
Mariquita, meaning 'ladybird' in Spanish, is a 19-metre gaff cutter, and was built in 1911 by William Fife. Her overall length is 125 feet.
From 1967 to 1973 Mariquita was in a mud berth at Pinmill on the Orwell. Apparently, Mariquita was laid up on the Deben during the 2nd World War, then afterwards towed round to Pinmill and put into a mud berth just down stream of the Butt and Oyster pub. There was then and still are in 2008, a quantity of "houseboats" in berths here. Mariquita was bow in to the river bank, moored with chains and supported between 4 very large posts. At high springs she would float, settling again, not always level, as the tide went down. It was from Pin Mill in 1991 that Fairlie Restorations rescued Mariquita, she was taken round to the Hamble in a Thames lighter. Work started on the restoration in 2001. She was restored at Fairlie Restorations in the UK and was launched in the summer of 2004.