Originally built in 1915 by Captain Ralph Hodges in Rose Bay, N.C., the Ada Mae was used for oystering, fishing, crabbing and cargo hauling for the first 50 years of her existence. In 1949 she was sold into the oystering fleet in Crisfield, Maryland when the laws in North Carolina changed to allow the mechanical harvesting of oysters. In 1965, the National Brewing Company in Baltimore bought her and converted her to a hospitality boat supporting the “Save the Bay” program. In the early 1980s, she was donated to a Maryland sea school as a training vessel and she was used until the school could no longer keep her seaworthy. She was then purchased by a retired Chesapeake Bay pilot, who sold it to the Institute for International Maritime Research (IIMR)in Washington, N.C., for $1.00. In 2002, Carolina Coastal Classrooms obtained the vessel from IIMR for use as a classroom. A full restoration was completed in 2006, and she now sails as a floating classroom for students in eastern North Carolina.