Simply Marv-elous: Monument honors Creamer’s epic voyage

Incorporating the beauty of the natural world, the newest public art installation on Rowan University’s Glassboro campus pays homage to an incredible journey that began with an idea. 

But Endeavor, dedicated on Oct. 28 to honor the record-setting, around-the-world voyage of retired Geography Professor Marvin Creamer, also is designed to educate--and inspire--the next generation of global explorers.

“Marv said, ‘I still want to teach geography for many, many decades to come,’” John Hasse, chair of the Department of Geography and Environment, said of Creamer, 99, the only human being ever to sail around the world without the use of artificial navigational tools, such as a compass or sextant.

Creamer used only the stars, water currents—and his vast knowledge of geography—to find his way during the epic, 510-day, 30,000-mile voyage from December of 1982 to May of 1984. His feat earned him worldwide acclaim, which continues today. He also garnered a host of honors, including the Blue Water Medal from the Cruising Club of America, widely considered the Pulitzer Prize of sailing.

Endeavor

Designed with his input, Endeavor honors Creamer’s extraordinary accomplishment, which he completed upon his retirement from the University at age 67.

Located just east of Robinson Hall between the southwest corner of Esbjournson Gymnasium and the stream that runs along Meditation Walk, the monument is built of natural materials. It is shaped and scaled to the size of the Globe Star, the 35-foot, steel-hulled cutter that Creamer sailed into history.

At the monument’s center—in the location of where the Globe Star’s mast would have been—a signpost rises with markers for destinations around the world. Ever the educator, Creamer chose the locales—Moscow, Rome, Cape Town, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo—and himself calculated the great circle distances from Rowan to each.

The boulders that form the Globe Star are in precise alignment with the shadows created by the post to function as a sort of celestial sundial and to mark the cardinal directions and summer and winter solstice, as well as fall and spring equinox.

The multi-layered work of art, built in the geographic center of Main Campus, will work to inspire others as they learn more about Creamer and his contributions both to the University and to exploration, Hasse and Rowan President Ali Houshmand both said at the dedication ceremony.

"In the heart of campus, there’s a geography lesson. The sundial is like Stonehenge. They will call it Creamer-henge,” joked Hasse, who guided installation of Endeavor.

“The monument symbolizes what Professor Creamer lives,” Houshmand added. “It exposes students to the rest of the world. It will get them thinking about the possibilities of seeing different places around the globe.”

‘I was taken prisoner by an idea’

Creamer, who spoke before an appreciative crowd at the dedication ceremony, held in Campbell Library due to inclement weather, is hopeful that the monument will remind members of the campus community to act on their own big ideas.

In embarking on the trip, he fulfilled a dream he first had as a 17-year-old growing up in Vineland. Five decades later, as a retiree, Creamer began his journey. A 1943 alumnus, Creamer taught at the University for 29 years before his retirement in 1981.

“I was taken prisoner by an idea,” Creamer explained. “Ideas are very powerful things.

“I was considered to be crazy or stupid or just out of it. When I took off on Dec. 21, 1982, there were two people who believed I would come back. I was one of them. Blanche Creamer was the other,” he said of his late wife.

Yet, Creamer succeeded. His voyage is a testament to hard work, pluck, intelligence and a can-do attitude, said Hasse, who, only half-jokingly, said Creamer is a real-life superhero. At sea, the Globe Star endured violent storms, broken tiller, and a host of other challenges.

A pioneer in geography education

“Marv’s spirit has touched so many people. He is one of the most inspirational human beings I know and is a pioneer in geography education,” Hasse said, noting that the department Creamer founded has graduated 715 students. Alumni include more than five dozen K-12 teachers, plus urban planners and geo scientists, and tenure track professors, four of whom now teach at Rowan.

While Creamer eschewed technology during his voyage—he didn’t even use a watch—he embraced new technologies while a University professor. In 1955, he actually taught geography from an airplane and also produced two live television broadcasts about Delaware Valley manufacturing.

Houshmand said he is inspired by Creamer’s work as a teacher and scholar—and by his completion of the physically demanding trip as he approached his seventh decade.

“He retired at age 67 and said, ‘OK. Let’s go have some fun,’” Houshmand said. “I wish he could share some of that (vigor) with the rest of us. What he has accomplished is absolutely wonderful.”

After the dedication ceremony for Endeavor, which drew University colleagues, retirees and many students, Creamer led a group out to the monument. As he approached the signpost, the gathering broke out in applause.

"The monument touches my heartstrings,” he said. “It’s really appreciated and it’s nice to be recognized by a University that deals in ideas.

“Do I dare say that this elegant piece of sculpture is Marv-elous?”

Nearly 100…and still giving back

While the monument honors Creamer and will serve as an informal outdoor classroom of sorts, Creamer continues to give back to Rowan as he approaches his 100th birthday in January. In 2012, he donated to the Frank H. Stewart Room in Campbell Library the extraordinarily detailed logs of his trip and his vast collection of press clippings so that future scholars and historians have first-hand accounts of the voyage.

In 2013, to honor the 30th anniversary of the voyage, Creamer was honored at a celebration that raised $5,000 for the Marvin Cremer Scholarship. The scholarship is given to an undergraduate geography student who exemplifies intellectual curiosity and a spirit of adventure.

After the dedication ceremony of Endeavor, Creamer donated his Blue Water Medal—and his sun-faded sailing hat—to the Department of Geography and Environment.