Captain Philip DeCamp Fleischman of Vineyard Haven died peacefully at his home on Oct. 3. He was 92.

Philip was a resident of Martha’s Vineyard for more than 50 years. He will be remembered by many as an avid sailor and boatbuilder as well as a home builder on the Island.

He was born on June 18, 1931 to Frank and Lenore Fleischman in the Bronx in New York City. In his youth, he was a boatbuilder and worked at local boatyards in the Bronx while studying geology at Columbia University. It took 10 years to finish his own 26-foot wooden boat, and the boat was seaworthy.

After college, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War. At the rank of corporal, he was stationed aboard a Navy ship in the Mediterranean.

He owned a 37-foot Downeaster motorboat that he sailed to Florida twice through the Intracoastal Waterway and up to Lake Ontario, up the Hudson River through the Erie and Oswego canals into Lake Ontario.

He held had a 100-ton captain’s license and, in the 1960s, captained large sailboats from Fort Lauderdale to Grand Bahama Island, crossing the rough Gulf Stream during winter. He loved telling stories of his early sailing days and made note of the navigational tools available now compared to his early days of sailing when only a compass was available.

After he married his beloved wife Ilse, he taught industrial arts classes to junior high school students in New York City.

Phil came to the Vineyard after his friend Dale Pelow invited him to sing at the Colonial Inn, which Dale had just purchased. Phil did many repairs but never sang there. This led to building his own homes on the Island, as well as eight others here.

He and Ilse joined in partnership with the McConnells, who owned the Martha’s Vineyard Travel Bureau in Vineyard Haven where Little House Cafe is now located. They assumed ownership after the McConnells moved off-Island and they operated it for 19 years. Phil and Ilse always hired one extra person so someone could travel; everyone liked working there because they could travel.

Phil was a gifted singer who sang professionally for the St. James Episcopal Church in Manhattan for 11 years and then the Church of the Heavenly Rest for six years. On the Vineyard, he sang for many years with Island Community Chorus. He also sang sea chanteys and made a record called A Treasury of Spicy Sea Songs.

He was also a storyteller. In later years he became the author of Scuttlebutt, Memoirs of Captain Philip DeCamp Fleischman.

He was part of a group of eight to 10 people who sailed one-meter-long model boats at Owen Park on Sundays and Wednesdays. They named it the Martha’s Vineyard Model Yacht Club.

All who knew him will miss his joyful, friendly, fun-loving spirit. He recalled to his nephew that he had a wonderful life, had been very lucky and had no way to complain.

Philip will be greatly missed by his longtime companion Eleanor (Ellie) Tuck and his nephews and nieces: Robert Buhler, Christopher Buhler, William Buhler, Carla Rempt, Adelaide Fleischman, April Bruchbacher and Nancy Bruchbacher.

He was predeceased by his wife Ilse, brother Ralph Fleischman and his sisters Helena Buhler and Lenore Bruchbacher.

A celebration of life will be held for family and friends at a future date.

Memorial contributions in honor of Phil’s joyful spirit and voice may be made to Island Community Chorus at Islandcommunitychorus.com.