Fate, in the form of an idea, stepped
in at that point. The Brazosport Chamber of
Commerce decided to erect a monument to the
area’s shrimping industry. A project committee was
named and a long list of local firms and individuals
offered their assistance. The Chamber committee went
shopping for a suitable boat.
Several veteran vessels were offered
for the project, Mystery was chosen.
A site, on Highway 288 at the head of
the Freeport harbor channel, was provided and some
of the committee members set about getting a slab
and mounts built on the spot. The next question was
of moving a 40-ton boat across town to a dry land
berth. Although the monument site is within feet of
water, the boat could not be moved by water. The
Mystery would have had to be floated
again to get her off the river bottom, then
practically submerged again to go under a railroad
bridge, and even then the water near the site was
too shallow to bring her within reach of hoisting
machinery.
A local firm offered the use of a
large dock almost directly across from where the old
boat was moved. Several cranes were located but it
was determined that none of the land based machines
were large enough to reach out over water and lift
an object of the Mystery’s size. A
100-ton barge-mounted crane was offered, big enough
to raise the old boat and set it out on the dock.
Meanwhile, the Mystery had been
floated again, towed to another point on the
waterfront, hauled out of the water on ways,
scraped, cleaned and painted and returned to her
original mooring, where she promptly sank again.
Movement from the dock cross-country
to the monument site posed a problem, until someone
located a suitable vehicle – a unique 32 wheel frame
trailer designed specifically for this type of work.
Its owner offered the trailer for the job, and the
Chamber committee was instructed to ‘come and get
it’. It was parked in a farm field near Brazoria and
had to be hauled to Freeport. Of its 32 tires, three
were flat. Several of its axels needed repair. Also,
the trailer was one foot wider than the Brazos
River Bridge between Brazoria and Freeport. The
committee got out its tire tools, welding rigs and
road maps.
Meanwhile, the Mystery
was moved again, this time downstream to a marine
service yard to have its masts cut off – a
logistical necessity since the boat measures 17 feet
from keel to wheelhouse, the trailer would add a
foot or more, and some utility lines along the
designated cross-town route were 19 feet above the
street.
On moving day, an army of heavy
equipment, cranes, trucks, trailer, cars, project
personnel, reporters and onlookers converged on the
dock where the Mystery was to be
lifted. The old boat was pumped out (she was heading
for bottom again), urged across the river, slings
were slipped under her and she was lifted from the
water for the last time. The equipment swung her
over the dock and carefully set her upon a special
trailer. I-beams groaned and the trailer center bar
sagged to about a half-inch off the surface of the
dock. A heavy winch truck was hooked on, put into
gear and the Mystery was on her way.
She went about eight feet before the trailer hit
high center for the first time.
Another winch truck was called in.
In the next two hours the
Mystery moved almost a half-mile. It got
hung up on top of a levee, chased two winch trucks
down the other side when they finally worked it
loose, stalled on a sharp turn, tied up an
intersection for about 45 minutes while tractors
worked to ease it around a bend without knocking
over any light poles, and got stuck on a railroad
track. Then the worst part was over, and it crept
gracefully along a wide residential street toward
its final resting place, while awed bystanders
watched it pass.
On site, two large cranes sitting on
the slab, braced on wood supports lifted the Mystery
and permanent cradles were erected under it. The
masts and outriggers were restored, painting was
completed, nets were put up, lights were installed
and hooked up and the site was landscaped. Its
registry name was repainted in bold letters: ‘MYSTERY
– FREEPORT, TEXAS’. A Coast Guard registry
official closed out his records on the old boat with
the acceptable word, ‘dismantled’ The Brazosport
Chamber opened its records on the new monument with
the words, ‘Dedicated to the men and boats
who pioneered the shrimping industry and made
Freeport its capital’.”
Mystery solved.
|
The Mystery as
she proudly stands today
Freeport, Texas |
