Jane Robinson Hartge's Obituary
JANE ROBINSON HARTGE: Sailor, Author, World Traveler, Homemaker
Jane Robinson Hartge died peacefully Tuesday, January 13, 2015, in Eustis, Florida, with her family beside her.
Born June 11, 1919 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Charles Milton Robinson and Agnes Ladson Robinson, Jane spent a long lifetime happily centered on family and boating.
At age 13, Jane began writing maritime articles for the Miami Herald, reporting on the comings and goings of yachts large and small. Three years later she sailed with her father on his yacht to Venezuela and back through the Caribbean, keeping a journal that would later inspire her book, “The Way They Were: With Cachalot to the Caribbees.” Without her father, when Jane was 19, she skippered his 40’ schooner Windstark from Florida to Maryland. The crew of four included her 17-year-old sister Mardi.
In 1941 she married Chesapeake Bay boatbuilder and designer Ernest “Capt. Dick” Hartge, and started their family in Galesville, Maryland.
While her husband was designing and building boats, Jane began her own business, renting out a small fleet of sailboats. Following their move south in 1961, Jane and Capt. Dick created a similar fleet on Lake Eustis, Florida, sparking a great sailing tradition that continues today as Lake Eustis Sailing Club.
In her later years, she enjoyed writing of her life experiences. She was known until the end of her years for her astounding memory, with the tiniest details, especially of boats and boatyards, available instantly and completely.
Over her life she traveled, mostly by sea, to Europe, Canada, South and Central America, and her beloved Man O’ War Cay, Abaco, Bahamas. She encouraged travel and exploration in all of her children and grandchildren.
She was predeceased by her husband Capt. Dick in 1979. She is survived by daughters Maryland Hartge Cole, Catonsville, MD; Alice Hartge Wilson, Martinsburg, WV; C.W. Totch Hartge, Easton, MD; and Suzanna Vance Hartge, Grand Island, FL; as well as 12 grandchildren, and 10 great grandchildren.
In lieu of remembrances, please donate to the charity of your choice.
There will a Celebration of Life Sunday, January 18, 2015, at the Lake Eustis Sailing Club at 5 p.m., 1310 North County Road 452, Eustis, FL.
Burial will be later this year at St. Mary’s City, MD.
Condolences, memories and photos may be shared on the tribute wall.
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