James Archibald Mitchell III, a world renowned nautical painter and local treasure, passed away at his Noank home on Feb. 22 surrounded by his friends, family and collections.

Jim was born in 1932 in Baltimore and spent his boyhood in Englewood, N.J. He enjoyed a few summers on Fishers Island where his father was a minister, and where Jim fell in love with old yachts — their shapes, textures and colors. His fascination later drew him back here to serve in the U.S. Coast Guard as boatswain on the square rigger barque Eagle for four years.

Jim then studied illustration and realism under esteemed instructor Frank J. Reilly at the Art Students League in New York City for four years. His stunning depictions of ships made a big splash and were displayed in museums from the Kennedy in NYC to the Haley & Steele in Boston. He also spent time painting in several New England locations including Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, Newport and Mystic.

He eventually settled on Beebe Cove in Noank for over 45 years and became a respected local fixture, surrounded by old boats, antique cars and a few sheds full of treasures.

In recent years, Jim also illustrated a series of local children’s books written by Stephen Jones, UConn Maritime Studies professor emeritus, called “Scratch, the Boatyard Cat.”

Dr. Jones stated: “In a region where every third person seems to be a maritime artist, Jim Mitchell stands above the rest when it comes to getting right the dynamic relationship between wind, sail and water. He also, in the appropriate genre, has a marvelous sense of whimsy.”

Over several decades, Jim has exhibited in many galleries; locally there are eight commissioned portraits of the Coast Guard’s training ships hanging in the Coast Guard Academy Museum in New London. And at Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, you can find a series of his paintings hanging on the fifth floor which he donated as he completed them while recovering from a stroke there years ago.

In connection with a memorial service scheduled for April 30, curator Tim Pratt has announced that a retrospective of Jim Mitchell’s art will be held April 27 to May 21 at the Noank Historical Society’s Latham-Chester Store Museum on Main Street. The hours will be Wednesdays from 2 to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. This show plans to feature a full range of his work, from action portraits of Shenandoah and Arethusa, to New England barnscapes, to mischievous kittens and everything in between.

We will miss joking around with Jim as he rolls up to the Noank post office in his 1980s coat-of-many-colors Chrysler coupe. He was a man who, by one account, had a rich but not wealthy life — he never stopped doing what he loved, so he never needed more than his supplies and a place to use them.

Ed Johnson and his daughter Lacy live in Noank.