PJ Decker and the Art of Boatbuilding 

Through our Heritage Preservation initiatives, Shorefast is devoted to conserving the traditions that tie people to place. Beyond restoring historic homes and churches, these initiatives carry forward our heritage by sharing the knowledge that once inhabited these buildings.  

Located in the community of Joe Batt’s Arm, the Punt Premises sets a perfect example. There, the legacy of the inshore fishery lives through a collection of historical and cultural assets shared by experienced Community Hosts and our Punt Master PJ Decker.  

Preserving boatbuilding on Fogo Island

At the heart of the Punt Premises drifts the mighty punt, the former workhorse of the fishery. Building these small wooden boats was once essential to surviving on Fogo Island. Today, with most wooden boats gone from our waters, so are the skills and expertise required for boatbuilding, a craft that helped build our community. Only a handful of wooden boatbuilders remain on Fogo Island and Change Islands.  

To ensure this knowledge is preserved on Fogo Island, PJ recently completed a week-long boatbuilding workshop at the Wooden Boat Museum of Newfoundland and Labrador in Winterton. Led by the museum’s master builder, Jerome Canning, the course focused on the construction of a Winterton Rodney, a wooden punt typical of the area.  

Gushing about the experience, PJ explained: “It’s not about survival or making a living anymore. It’s about the beauty of the tradition.”  

All hands on deck

During the five-day workshop, PJ learned many traditional techniques through hands-on lessons with Jerome. These included connecting the stem (the most forward part of a boat) to the keel (the structural “spine” of a boat), recording the shape for the timbers (the “ribs” of the boat), ensuring the keel was straight from stem to stern, cutting and bevelling timbers to secure in the boat, and many more building methods.  

One of the most important elements of boatbuilding learned by PJ was the three-piece mould, which was crucial for designing and building the punts. The mould helped determine the size and shape of the hull. As Jerome told PJ, these “three sticks” were all our ancestor needed to make a living in Newfoundland:  

“He leaves the boat from Liverpool or somewhere, with a big knife, a nickel from his mother, and a bit of this, and a bit of that, never to see England again, but what he’s got in his hands are those three sticks – boats for his family.”  

These tools and techniques come together to build punts Jerome referred to as “suant,” a traditional term in Newfoundland that means symmetrical, harmonious, balanced, and beautiful. PJ adds that the punts of Fogo Island and Change Islands were always suant; he hopes what he learned will help keep them that way.  

“Fogo Island punts are different than any other punts in Newfoundland. If we lose tradition, then there will never be Fogo Island punts again,” he explains.  

Building a legacy

Back at the Punt Premises, PJ is wielding the lessons learned in Winterton to enrich the heritage of the building, home to historic boatbuilding tools and models, such as the famous three-piece mould. With this acquired knowledge, our Punt Master can share the boatbuilding techniques of our ancestors with visitors and residents and keep this tradition at the heart of the stories we tell of this place. The course will also help PJ repair Shorefast’s own fleet of punts and ensure Fogo Island’s mighty wooden boats stay afloat for the next generations.  

Learn more about the Punt Premises and PJ’s work as Punt Master.