The much-anticipated Tall Ships event will get a warm welcome from the East End Seaport Museum at its seasonal opening this weekend, as a special exhibit kicks off, featuring “L’Hermione”, along with a fleet of 15 model ships from the Museum’s permanent collection.
Opening festivities take place Saturday from 4 to 6 p.m.
Pre-sale tickets to the Tall Ships visit will be available for purchase beginning on Saturday.
The Seaport Museum also will be offering a special, interactive program to complement the Tall Ships visit through the East End Model Yacht Club. Sailors and sail enthusiasts of all ages are invited to enjoy racing and tactical demonstrations. Model yacht racing is scheduled for the third Saturdays through September.
Also at Saturday’s opening, the induction of the Bug Light room, dedicated to the Seaport Museum’s stewardship of the Long Beach Bar, or “Bug”, Lighthouse.
Museum Trustee Lynn Summers coordinated the “L’Hermione” exhibit, which spotlights General Lafayette’s voyage to America. “I am impressed by the fact that Congress actually met once aboard the original L’Hermione,” she said. L’Hermione made history by sailing to assist George Washington during the Revolutionary War.
Summers and her husband George have installed eight educational panels that illustrate the construction of the L’Hermione reproduction and the life of General Lafayette.
The vessel is the sparkling jewel in this year’s Tall Ships 2015 festivities, which takes place July 4 to 7 in Greenport.
The exhibit will be on display at the East End Seaport Museum all summer.
To complement the exhibit, the Museum’s Small Ships are on display, models of Tall Ships beautifully created and rich with detail. The newly formed East End Model Yacht Club will host model yacht racing and tactical demonstrations under the helm of Seaport member Ed Chimney, on the third Saturdays of the month through September.
Saturday’s event will also feature a raffle for Lighthouse Cruise tickets and museum gift shop items. The event is free and light refreshments will be served.
Recently, the Museum also presented its newly refurbished saltwater aquarium.
