We have great news! WAVERTREE, a cargo ship built in 1885 and crown jewel of the Museum’s fleet, will leave for shipyard Thursday, May 21st at 12:30pm to undergo a massive New York City-funded stabilization and restoration project — the largest project of its kind undertaken in recent U.S. history. The 130-year-old ship, built of riveted wrought iron, is archetypal of the sailing cargo ships of the latter half of the 19th century that would line South Street by the dozens at a time, giving it the moniker the “Street of Ships.”

This $9 million-plus stabilization and restoration project, to be undertaken at Caddell Drydock and Repair in Staten Island, will address critical long-term preservation of the ship, and will lay the groundwork for the re-rigging of WAVERTREE back at South Street upon her return in 2016. The WAVERTREE stabilization and restoration project is a key part of South Street Seaport Museum’s plan to revitalize the Lower Manhattan waterfront and highlight the meaningful historic connections of this important part of New York.

I hope that you will join me, Cultural Affairs Commissioner Tom Finkelpearl, and other City officials, in a celebratory send-off on May 21, 2015 at 12:30pm on Pier 15. 

Submitted by Jonathan Boulware, Executive Director of South Street Seaport Museum