A painting entitled “Off Block Island” by Ellery Thompson is
a recent gift to the collections at Mystic Seaport. Thompson was a local
fisherman, author, artist and raconteur of some note. His story-telling ability
landed him in the New Yorker in 1947, subject of a profile by writer Joseph
Mitchell. Afterwards, Thompson went on to write his own books about life as a
Connecticut fisherman. Draggerman’s
Haul: the Personal History of a Connecticut Fishing Captain and Come
Aboard the Draggers, were published in the 1950’s when Thompson was in his
50’s.
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| "Off Block Island," by Ellery Thompson. |
Ellery Thompson painted hundreds of pictures in a primitive style and many of these made
their way into friends’ homes and not a few into local museums and historical
societies. Mystic Seaport is glad to have a number of his works. Mystic
Seaport owns a western-rigged dragger named FLORENCE, and one of the boats seen
here is purported to be her. Thompson was born in 1899 and died in 1986, but his
character lives on in his books, some oral histories and, of course, his
brightly-colored paintings depicting scenes from his life experiences.