Looking for specific boat plan from the 1950's

I am planning a long term project of rebuilding my grandfathers 44' Schooner. I am looking for the design plans and any other information relating to this boat. It was apparently built by William Hand in Mahone Bay Nova Scotia in the 1950's. It was originally named the sheherazade. At the time my grandfather purchased it she was named the Thetis. He donated it to a sailing school because he could not keep up the maintenance as he got older. the ship sat there for a number of years and was eventually scrapped because it then required too much work. Anyone who has any info or website links that can direct me to the plans, construction, design, etc. would be helpful

 

I have not seen this issue, but the Wooden Boat back issue index at http://www.woodenboat.com/wbbacki.htm mentions an article on William Hand's Motorsailers which might at least provide some further contact information, though at 30 years out of date, I'm not sure if it would pan out.

#28, May/June '79 — William Hand’s Motorsailers

 

This might be relevant:

MIT exhibiting ship designs of local builder

From the shores of Buzzards Bay, William H. Hand Jr. came to be known as a nationally and internationally recognized naval architect.
For a period just before the turn of the Century until his death in 1946, the prolific designer carved out a lasting niche for himself as both a sailing and motor craft designer.
Now an MIT Museum project is attempting to flesh out a complete listing of Hand designs and other data on the marine architect who called the SouthCoast home.
"What we're trying to do is to connect up with as many local resources as possible," said Kurt Hasselbalch, curator of the Hart Nautical Collection at the MIT Museum, which is assembling a collection on Mr. Hand's life.

"We're looking for photos, and we're looking for artifacts, if such things exist,' he said. "And we're trying to find design catalogues he published for 20 years.
"They appear to be as rare as a hound's tooth."
Born in Portland, Maine, the son of Captain William H. Hand, a former naval officer in the Civil War, Mr. Hand first began designing boats upon graduation from Brown University.
Mr. Hand came to the New Bedford area before the turn of the century and his name soon became nationally and internationally known as the owner of the Buzzards Bay Yacht Agency.
Among the vessels he designed, perhaps the most famous was the schooner Bowdoin, the flagship of Cmdr. Donald MacMillan's Arctic expeditions.
He also designed two other Arctic vessels, the Ariel, and the Zodiac.
His best known work is perhaps the development of the Hand V-bottom boats. The Hand-designed Countess, a V-bottom express cruiser he built and sailed, set a new record in the New York Yacht Club's annual classic from Whortelberry Island to Block Island in 1916. The Countess covered 100 nautical miles in a little better than four hours.
From his offices he furnished boat designs which saw their way to such distant points as South America and New Zealand, and is believed to be the first to introduce a modified version of the Cape Cod catboat to New Zealand waters.
During World War I he helped get a New England shipbuilding program underway for the region and later served as naval architect at the Navy Yard in Philadelphia where he designed sea planes for the war effort.
A member of the New Bedford Yacht Club, he served as commodore of the group in 1929. He was also a member of the Wamsutta Club and numerous organizations connected with yachting and yacht design.
When he died in March, 1946, he was in Maine working on a boat under construction in East Boothbay.
The current project is part of MIT's Davis-Hand Collection, which includes the work of Mr. Hand's primary draftsmen and later co-designer Robert O. Davis. The project was initiated in 1996.
"Our objective is to publish a complete list of all plans together with the most comprehensive design listing possible." said Mr. Hasselbalch. "Unfortunately, the only surviving Hand design log contains very little, or no information about more than half of Hand's 650 designs."
"We would most certainly be interested in any photographs which relate directly to William H. Hand's life in the New Bedford area," added Mr. Hasselbalch. "Unfortunately, we have no quality photographs relating to William Hand's life in New Bedford," he added. "We think that many photos relating to Hand exist in personal collections of people (in the New Bedford area)."
Mr. Hasselbalch has already contacted Joe Thomas of Spinner Publications, Judy Lund at the Old Dartmouth Historical Society, and the Fairhaven Star project at the Millicent Library in Fairhaven.
The goal is to organize all photographs and published designs by subject or design number, and microfilm the collection along with plans. A section of the guide would also list the photographs and published materials, and cite the published sources.
The curator can be reached by calling (617) 253-5942.

This is an article written by Jack Stewardson for The Standard-Times writtein in 1998.

 

thanks for the post

Yes that post was excellent. I will call the curator as well as my family members. My family is sure to have a number of photos, etc. so perhaps the museam will find a use for them. Terrible to think that as a gift to a sailing school, they scrapped the boat. I am excited to one day find her floating in the bay again.
thanks