What does the future hold for Governor Stone?

BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - The Governor Stone, a National Historic Landmark schooner built in 1877 and the last operating Gulf Coast sailing schooner in the United States, faces an uncertain future as it needs a new home.

The vessel has sailed Gulf waters since the 1800s, but was damaged when Hurricane Michael hit Panama City in 2018. Friends of the Governor Stone, a volunteer non-profit that cares for the vessel, has caring for it for years.

“Our goal is to build her and put her back to the way she was, so that she’ll last another 100 and something years,” said Colleen Reilly, president of Friends of the Governor Stone.

Custody Changes to the St. Andrews School Property:

In 2022, the vessel was transported to the Historic Saint Andrews School. Friends of the Governor Stone entered into a lease agreement with Panama City to rebuild the schooner at the old school.

In 2024, Destination Panama City took over custodianship of the property and had an agreement to maintain the rebuilding of the schooner.

“The friends of Governor Stone have always been a critical part of the cultural fabric of what makes up Saint Andrews. Very sad to see it damaged,” said Jennifer Vigil, president of Destination Panama City.

At the end of 2025, Destination Panama City relinquished responsibility for the Saint Andrews School property and allowed Governor Stone to remain there until February 2026.

The Saint Andrews School is now owned by Bay County, and the county does not have plans to keep the ship there.

“They’ve expressed an interest in continuing that lease at the property, but at this time, the county is not interested in pursuing that. We are not really sure exactly what the future holds for this property, but it’s time for Governor Stone to find somewhere else to be,” said Valerie Sale, spokesperson for Bay County.

The county has offered to help find another location, give them time to get the boat ready, and potentially help pay for the relocation. However, moving the vessel presents significant challenges.

FEMA Funding Complications:

Besides finding a new home, Governor Stone faces another challenge with funding.

“The public thinks that we’ve received 1.5 million dollars in cash. But we did not. So what that means is we have to continuously raise money so that we can pay the shipbuilder, and then we submit the invoices and wait for FEMA to reimburse us. That takes a very long process, anywhere from six months... we’ve waited 18 months for reimbursements,” Reilly said.

If the rebuild comes to a halt, Friends of the Governor Stone say they could lose their FEMA grant.

In a desperate attempt to find a solution and a new home for the schooner, Friends of the Governor Stone attended a Tourism Development Council meeting on Tuesday. They asked if the TDC would enter into a short-term lease agreement with them on the Saint Andrews School property, or at least meet to discuss a path forward.

No decision was made. TDC Chairman Claire Pease said it is not up to her; the decision to do anything with the property would be up to Bay County and its commissioners.

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