In his day he was hailed as a master of his trade, designing and building some of the finest ships ever to slide down the ways at Kingsport – and in Canada as a matter of fact.

This was Ebenezer Cox (1828-1916) who in 1864 began shipbuilding with his brother, William. The Cox shipyard in Kingsport turned out some of the largest sailing vessels in Canada; one of these vessels, built in 1891 was the 2,137-ton Canada. The Kings County, hailed as one of only two four-masted vessels built in Canada, was launched in 1890.

The shipbuilding career of Ebenezer Cox has never been fully told. However, an attempt was made to tell his story in 1903 when Cox was interviewed and his record published in Middleton’s weekly newspaper, the Outlook – he was 75 at the time. In 1904, the article was reprinted in the Wolfville Acadian. I learned about this account of Cox’s career from the Windsor historian L. S. (Larry) Loomer. Mr. Loomer copied the account from the Acadian and sent it to me, along with an explanatory letter. That was 20 years ago.