The Bluenose II was launched in 1963 from the Lunenburg shipyard in Smith and Rhuland in Nova Scotia. She was an exact reproduction of the famous Bluenose fishing schooner of Nova Scotia built in 1921. Her predecessor used to carry tons of fish and lumber but Bluenose II carries people. Many of the same men that built Bluenose in 1921 worked on the new one. She has a draft of 16 feet, length of 161 feet and a mainmast height of 125' 10" from the deck. John MacLeod has placed her on the Chesapeake Bay at the Potomac River in his painting.