Chattanooga Shipbuilders?

A couple hundred of the most determined artisans in the country are meeting here to show off their work.

The Nautical Society is a national organization of people who build model ships.

Some of those works of art on display took well over a 1000 hours of work and some would sell for 30-thousand dollars.

The Nautical club members from all over the country came to Chattanooga this year to hear the nautical stories of the Tennessee River. .

Gerald Shaw says the city's name plays a big part in navy history.

GERALD SHAW, CHATTANOOGA  "In researching those ships, I became the chairman to do what I could to try and get the artifacts back to Chattanooga and try to get a Maritime Museum built."

Shaw says there's even a civil war era shipwreck in the river across from Ross's landing.

It's the first time this annual meeting has been held at an in-land American city.