History of Dixieland Chapter
Ken Jorgensen
During the spring of 1983, Nashville businessmen Ken Jorgensen and Dorman Burtch met and pondered the possibility of organizing some wood boat activity in the mid-South and Southeast. Before contacting ACBS about forming a chapter, extensive research was undertaken. Dorman, Ken and Paul and Janet Pletcher obtained and reviewed the microfilm records of over 250,000 registered boats in Tennessee. This effort identified 1,100 in addition to the roster of the Chris Craft Antique Boat Club in the subject states. The response from interested boat owners was overwhelming and formed the basis to forge ahead. The potential membership along with a business plan and the required draft Constitution and Bylaws were presented to the ACBS Board of Directors in mid-1983. The request was to charter the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. There were some board members who said it would never work because they had never chartered such a large geographic area before. However, David Kidd, Bill Smith, Jay Higgins and several others were convinced that we could pull it off and we were given the go-ahead. During the fall of 1983, we were chartered as the Dixieland Chapter covering the states requested. Ken Jorgensen became the Chapter's first president, with Dorman Burtch in the key position as secretary/treasurer.
As membership continued to grow during 1984 and 1985, it became apparent that the Carolinas and Georgia had enough members to form another chapter. Under the leadership of Bill Norden, the Blue Ridge Chapter was chartered in 1986.
The Dixieland Chapter is organized with two-year terms for its officers and directors- president, two vice presidents, secretary/treasurer and directorships in each of the five states. Except for the several individuals responsible for awards, T-shirts and the newsletter, the Chapter operates without standing committees. The Chapter's events are chaired by people chosen primarily by the president -- volunteer help is always welcome. The chairs are responsible for all arrangements, show/rendezvous materials, etc. and their tireless work is greatly appreciated.
From the start, the Chapter has been guided by a number of principles. For Example:
--- All boating events will have lodging facilities on or near water.
--- There will be cruising at all events, e.g., luncheon or scenic cruises.
--- Members attending events without a boat will never be left standing on the dock.
--- There will be Skipper' Choice Awards along with the Longest Haul and Cruise. Chapter events are not judged.
The Chapter currently has 165 members from l5 states with the majority of those members in Alabama and Tennessee. There are three to four in-water boating events each year, an annual meeting and an every other year Tennessee River Cruise. These events have been held in Alexander City, Guntersville, Children's Harbour and Rogersville, Alabama, Madisonville, Louisiana and Pickwick Dam Tennessee. The Chapter's first in-water event was held at Joe Wheeler State Park Resort with six boats in the water, one on land and 12 people for dinner. Recent events field 25 to 35 boats and up to 100 participants.
Starting in 1983 the Chapter's newsletter, The Waterline was introduced and won the ACBS Best Newsletter Award in 1986. The The Waterline is published three times year and always features our members, their boats and Chapter events.