C. White Marine Awarded Commendation Medal for Pier Construction on Martha's Vineyard

C. White Marine, Inc., a Danvers, MA - based company specializing in marine construction, pile driving and bridge construction, received a medal of commendation this summer from the town of Chilmark in Martha's Vineyard, MA as thanks for the company's speedy completion of a 500-foot long concrete and steel drive-on dock in the fishing village of Menemsha.

The award was presented July 11, 2011, one year after a raging accidental fire engulfed Menemsha Harbor, burning its historic Coast Guard boathouse and pier and threatening shellfish beds and the village's fishing industry. One year later, the burned timber pier has been replaced by concrete and steel construction that Chilmark Selectman Warren Doty said, "will last beyond our lifetimes and will never burn again."

Lawrence White, owner of C. White Marine, a firm well respected for marine construction projects across Eastern Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island, said he's proud of the role C. White played in helping rebuild Menemsha Harbor pier. "Marine construction is always challenging but the Menemsha project even more so, given its unprotected location on the open ocean and workers' constant exposure to cold water, high tides, swift currents and changeable winter weather," White said.

Construction began in January 2011 when a tugboat transported materials and equipment by barge from New Bedford, MA across Buzzards Bay to Menemsha Harbor, located on the west coast of Martha's Vineyard. Materials included 65 steel piles, each 50 feet long, as well as steel pile caps, precast concrete deck planks, fiberglass sheet pile wave screens and lumber.

C. White Marine’s crane mounted on a barge was used to install the steel piles into the ocean floor. Piles were filled with concrete, topped with steel pile caps and covered with five-foot precast concrete planks. To protect the inner harbor from pounding surf C.White Marine added fiberglass sheet pile wave screens that run the length of the pier, and are fitted between the piles.

C. White Marine completed the entire 1.5 million town-funded pier project in four months. The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries imposed an April 1 completion deadline to protect spawning fish habitats and Chilmark wanted the job done prior to the summer tourism season. The finished, 15-foot-wide pier begins at Menemsha's quintessential New England harbor and stretches 500-feet to a parking lot where passengers depart for boating excursions.

About C. White Marine, Inc.

C. White Marine, a general contractor specializing in marine construction, pile driving and bridge construction, has been serving Eastern Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island since 1994. Owned by Larry White and Catherine White, the company received the 2011 STEP award by The Gould Construction Institute, the training affiliate to the Association of Builders and Contractors, in recognition of their exemplary safety record. With technical expertise and attention to customer satisfaction, C. White Marine tackles some of the most difficult and complex jobs in marine construction and boasts a 100% completion record on all projects. To learn more about C. White Marine visit