Tall Ship has only all-female crew

NEWPORT, R.I. (WPRI) - One of the 14 Tall Ships in Newport for the Ocean State Tall Ships Festival includes the only all-female crew in the world.

The Unicorn was built in the Netherlands from German U-boat metals in 1947 after World War II.

Since being commissioned, the ship has sailed the Mediterranean, West Indies, Caribbean, and Spanish coast.

The ship partners with Sisters Under Sail, a program that gives teenage girls experience on the seas and teaching them real-life lessons as they learn how to work as a team.

"When you take boys out of the mix for young girls there is this ability for them to step-up with leadership opportunities, like taking the helm or climbing the rigging or going down into the engine room," said Dawn Santamaria, Owner of the Unicorn and Founder & Executive Director of Sisters Under Sail.

Young crew members agree.

"It's been a big life change over the last 5 days, I found a lot about myself that I really never knew.  So it's a big learning curve along with learning heads or tails, so it's really cool," said Jess Mitchell.

Since the inception of Sisters Under Sail, 400 girls from across the United States and Canada have put aboard the Unicorn.

The Ocean State Tall Ships Festival runs through July 9.