We are excited to announce that we will be re-opening for the 2021 season, for free!

The Museum will open on May 22 and we will be open every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. until October 17. We’ll be all outside for 2021, with new outdoor exhibits about Prohibition in the Champlain Valley, aquatic invasive species and other threats to the lake, and more. The replica schooner Lois McClure will be docked right here at the Museum and open to the public Thursdays through Saturdays, weather and water level permitting, and the replica Revolutionary War gunboat Philadelphia II will be on display on the hard on the Museum green. 

Click here to read our full 2021 season announcement and mark your calendars!

The #AAM2021 program is packed with sessions covering topics from unconventional audience engagement initiatives to tackling climate change in exhibitions to the role of volunteer docents in social justice. With over 80 concurrent sessions, you are bound to leave #AAM2021 inspired and ready to take action at your museum. 

All sessions will be recorded, and you will receive a notification when you can access them. So, pick the session you most want to attend and know you can access other session recordings later and at your convenience.

Don’t miss the chance to connect with thousands of museum professionals from all over the world at the field’s largest event.

Hurry to register—space in the #AAM2021 Opening Event with The Second City is filling up fast!View the program

Beginning Memorial Day weekend, we are happy to welcome visitors to our campus! The Museum Store will be open Monday through Saturday 10am to 5pm and Sunday noon to 5pm. For those wishing to visit the rest of the museum, we will offer guided walking tours and family field trips. Tours will be available 7 days a week, pre-registration is encouraged. We will accept same-day reservations and walk-ins, subject to availability. Tours are $25 per household, up to 10 people. Book your tour today. Standard Walking Tours

• Tours last around 45 minutes.
• Staff-led tours make 7 stops outside buildings throughout the museum campus plus allow time for participants to explore our boat barns and the “Gone Fishing” exhibit.
• All ages are welcome and child-friendly tours are available.
• Tours explore the history of Maine through specific stories relating to Searsport and Penobscot Bay.

Family Field Trips

• Tours last up to 60 minutes.
• Each child receives a kit with everything they will need for their visit.
• A fun way to learn about life at sea, Maine boats, and Maine fisheries, activity topics include signal flags, boat bingo, compasses, and more! 
• PMM staff will guide your family through your visit including activity instruction and time to explore the boat barns and the “Gone Fishing” exhibit.
• Ideal for ages 6-12, all ages are welcome. 
• Family field trips are available through the end of June and are made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor. 

Planning your summer’s travels? Book your tour today. For more information on tours, please contact Jeana Ganskop at jganskop@pmm-maine.org.  Starting July 1st, we will begin offering self-guided museum visits. For more information please visit our website.

Door County Maritime Museum is pleased to announce that the tugboat John Purves in Sturgeon Bay, the Death’s Door Maritime Museum in Gills Rock, and the Cana Island Lighthouse in Baileys Harbor are all open for the 2021 season as of Saturday, May 1st.

Built in 1919 as the Butterfield, ​​​​​​​the John Purves has been painstakingly restored and outfitted to take visitors back to the days when she was dressed in Roen Steamship Company colors. The Death’s Door Maritime Museum celebrates the area’s commercial fishing tradition. Cana Island is Door County’s most iconic lighthouse, celebrating more than 150 years of standing watch on the shore of Lake Michigan. All DCMM locations are open seven days a week; see below for hours of operation. 

Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) is now accepting submissions for the Annual Navy History and Heritage Awards Program. The submission deadline is June 1, 2021.

The Annual Navy History and Heritage Awards Program was established to recognize public, nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organizations, including museums and individuals, who incorporate the history and heritage of the United States Navy into their publications, documents, and artifacts at their facilities. Each organization must encourage and publicize scholarly, well-researched historical stories that depict the Navy’s history and heritage as well as preserve and maintain artifacts on loan from the Navy.

“Many private, nongovernment museums are telling great stories about the history of the U.S. Navy to the American public,” announced NHHC Director, retired Rear Adm. Samuel Cox. “These awards are for those museums that serve as force multipliers in informing the public of our Navy’s rich history, proud heritage, and the importance of sea power to the security of the nation.”

Applicants may utilize their museums, buildings, historic ships and/or aircraft, and other exhibits or artifacts therein to provide or promote published research, preservation of artifacts, exhibiting artifacts and information, lectures, and other presentations. This program is meant to support and promote accurate and effective programs for exhibits, artifacts, and historical research. The winners will be awarded a plaque, pennant, and certificate of award for their excellence in Navy history and heritage. There are three awards categories.

• Navy History and Heritage Excellence Pennant (History “E”): Presented to the organization recognized for outstanding overall achievement in operations, including maintenance, curation/conservation, exhibitory, and Navy history education from organizations offering U.S. Navy-related programming to the public. Excellence will be awarded irrespective of financial resources.

• Maintenance Excellence Pennant (Maintenance “E”): Presented to the organization that has demonstrated greatest improvement in material condition over the past year of a macro artifact (e.g., historic ship, aircraft). Excellence will be awarded irrespective of financial resources.

• Curatorial Excellence Pennant (Curatorial “C”): Presented to the organization that has achieved excellence in the curation of the collections in its care, including maintaining and interpreting Navy artifacts on loan from NHHC central and local collections. Excellence will be awarded irrespective of financial resources.

Organizations may submit for award consideration by printing and fully completing the application for the category in which they wish to compete. Applications are available on the NHHC website at https://www.history.navy.mil/get-involved/nhhc-awards-program.html. Once complete, mail the full package (application and supporting documents) and a DVD that contains an Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) digital copy of the entire package submission to:

Deputy Director, Navy Museums Division Naval History and Heritage Command 805 Kidder Breese St. SE

Washington Navy Yard, D.C. 20374-5060

NOTE: All mail and packages coming to the Washington Navy Yard are delayed by enhanced security screening. Early submissions will be accepted. NHHC is not responsible for lost, incomplete or late entries.

For more information on Naval History and Heritage Command visit: https://www.history.navy.mil/

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is pleased to be able to offer a new way to experience the Chesapeake this year, with a monthly series of Wednesday Night Racing Spectator Cruises inviting the public to spend an evening on the Miles River watching sailboat races from the deck of CBMM’s 1920 buyboat Winnie Estelle.

With each set to depart from CBMM’s campus in St. Michaels, Md., cruises are scheduled for 5:30–7:30pm on June 2, July 7, and Aug. 4, and 5:15–7:15pm on Sept. 1 and Oct. 6.

These spectator cruises offer a great introduction to sailboat racing in a casual but competitive atmosphere. For extra fun, sign up to watch the annual James Wilson Round the Island Race on Aug. 4, where all boats race a set 6.8-mile course around Herring Island; and the Oct. 6 race, where the fleet celebrates the end of the sailing season with a competition for the “Best Dressed” award.

The cost to participate in one of CBMM’s Wednesday Night Racing Spectator Cruises is $20 per person, with a 20% discount for CBMM members. To register, visit cbmm.org/onthewater.

Beginning May 13, 2021, the Channel Islands Maritime Museum (CIMM) will be presenting its latest exhibition “Art of the Sailor” in its Brenda and Gary Farr Gallery.

When sailors left their homes to voyage across the sea, oftentimes they faced dangerous and extreme working conditions, horribly cramped quarters, and a journey that could stretch months to years. When stuck in these difficult and wearisome circumstances, some sailors used art to express themselves. “Art of the Sailor” will feature a unique collection of scrimshaw pieces (many of which have never been shown before at the Museum), decorative and working marine knots, unique embroidered items, and other sailor-made artifacts. Several of the items to be featured in the exhibition have never been seen outside of their privately-owned collections.

To accompany the exhibit, on May 19th, the CIMM Speaker Series will feature author and knot-tying expert Lindsey Philpott. A knot-tying book author, civil engineer, furniture maker, woodcarver, forensic engineer, and forensic knot analyst, Mr. Philpott will be sharing his amazing experiences and his love of the sailors’ art of knot tying.

 “Art of the Sailor” runs through August 23, 2021. Entrance to the exhibition is included in the price of admission to CIMM. Admission is: free for Museum members, $7.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors, $3 for youth (ages 6-17 years), free for children age 5 years and under.

This is a quick reminder that the Col. James M. Schoonmaker Museum Ship and Museum Tug Ohio opens tomorrow, May 1st. We strongly recommend reserving or pre-purchasing tickets as we are still at reduced visitor capacity to ensure the health and safety of our guests.
In addition, I wanted to share this aerial footage of the ship by Drone Works Media Toledo. We’ve placed it on our Facebook and YouTube pages and encourage you to share it as you see fit. 

• YouTube Link
• Facebook Link

Thanks for all you continue to do to help us spread the word. We are looking forward to the summer season!

Please go here for information:

https://artsconsulting.com/employment/vancouver-maritime-museum-executive-director/

National Maritime Day is a United States holiday created to recognize the maritime industry. It is  observed on May 22, the date in 1819 that the American steamship Savannah set sail from Savannah,  Georgia on the first ever transoceanic voyage under steam power.

In 2020, the Door County Maritime Museum, home to the restored tugboat John Purves (and a member  of the Historic Naval Ships Association & the Council of American Maritime Museums), organized a  synchronized ship’s whistle salute in honor of health care workers on the front lines as the coronavirus  pandemic began. Ships from coast to coast took part.  

We would like to make the coordinated whistle salute an annual event. This year, it makes sense to once  again pay tribute to health care workers who fought to save lives over the past year, while also honoring the merchant mariners who have kept goods moving around the globe despite the challenges of the  pandemic.  

OUR PLAN  

Saturday, May 22, 2021 at NOON (Central) (1PM Eastern & 10AM Pacific): All ships moored are  encouraged to sound a “Master’s Salute” simultaneously. A “Master’s Salute” consists of three  long blasts (:05 each) followed by two short blasts (:02 each).  

Every participating vessel is asked to shoot video for social media and share with the hashtag  #MaritimeHonors – as well as their own hashtag of choice.  

LOCALLY: Each ship is encouraged to share this notice ahead of the event with their local maritime  community. Make sure you notify local Coast Guard units so they are aware of your plans.  

STURGEON BAY: The Historic Tug John Purves will count down on VHF Channel 16 & 71 to the Noon  (central time) salute.  

The Museum, respecting waterways rules, has contacted the US Coast Guard stations in  Northeast Wisconsin to make them aware of the plan, as well as seek their participation in the  event.  

CONTACT:  

Kevin Osgood, Executive Director or Sam Perlman, Deputy Director  

(920) 743-5958 

Door County Maritime Museum & Lighthouse Preservation Society 

120 North Madison Avenue, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235-3416 

www.dcmm.org