Mystic Seaport or Mystic Seaport: The Museum of America and the Sea in Mystic, Connecticut is the largest maritime museum in the United States. It is notable for its collection of sailing ships and boats and for the re-creation of the crafts and fabric of an entire 19th-century seafaring village. It consists of more than 60 historic buildings, most of them rare commercial structures moved to the 19-acre (0.077Â km2) site and meticulously restored.
Overview
The museum was established in 1929 as the "Marine Historical Association". Its fame came with the acquisition of the Charles W. Morgan in 1941, the only surviving wooden sailing whaler. The Seaport was one of the first living history museums in the United States, with a collection of buildings and craftsmen to show how people lived; it now receives about 250,000 visitors each year.
The Seaport supports research via an extensive library and runs the Frank C. Munson Institute of American Maritime Studies, a summer graduate-level academic program established in 1955 by maritime historian Professor Robert G. Albion of Harvard University. The museum also hosts Williamsâ€"Mystic in conjunction with Williams College, an undergraduate program in maritime studies. Outreach includes sailing and history classes for area children.
Mystic Seaport is a popular destination for boaters, who pay to dock overnight just a short walk away from ships such as the Charles W. Morgan and the fishing schooner L. A. Dunton.
National Historic Landmarks
Four vessels at Mystic Seaport have been recognized by the United States Government as National Historic Landmarks
Other vessels
Buildings
The Preservation Shipyard is an important part of the museum. It is where traditional tools and techniques are used to preserve the Museum's collection of historic vessels, including the 1841 whaleship Charles W. Morgan. A replica of the slave ship La Amistad was constructed in the shipyard and launched in 2000. Amistad departed from New Haven, Connecticut on 21 June 2007 on a 14,000-mile (23,000Â km) transatlantic voyage to Great Britain, Lisbon, West Africa, and the Caribbean, marking the Atlantic trade and slave route to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the end of slavery in Great Britain.
The 19th-century seafaring village contains nearly all the types of general and specialized trades associated with building and operating a sailing fleet. They include a chandlery, sail loft, ropewalk, cooperage, shipping agent's office, printing office, bank, and others. Also included is The Spouter Tavern, open seasonally and serving "travelers' fare". Each building is used both to show the original activity and to display multiple examples of objects sold or constructed; for instance, the nautical instrument shop displays sextants, nautical timepieces, and the like. Demonstrations at the cooperage show how casks are assembled.
Additional buildings house more exhibits. One is a  1â„128th scale model of the entire Mystic River area c.1870, complete down to the outhouse behind every residence, a model 40 feet (12 m) long. Another contains a collection of carved ship figureheads. Also among the museum's buildings is a planetarium that demonstrates how seamen used stars for navigation.
Sailing
Sailing instruction is given here, as well as tourist rides at nominal cost in various historical small craft. Such tours give a good overview of historic ships at their moorings.
Music
Mystic Seaport's music program is unusual as it prominently features sea shanties in their original contexts as work songs. Regular sessions find shanty singers keeping museum visitors in line as they haul sails or turn a capstan. The Mystic Seaport Sea Music Festival, held annually in June since 1979, is among the oldest and largest in the United States.
Gallery
See also
- List of maritime museums in the United States
- List of museum ships
- Famous Sea Captain, Joseph Warren Holmes, many passings of Cape Horn
- Whaleboat - examples shown are at Mystic Seaport
- The official Mystic Seaport Podcast is available on MuseumPods, the Museum Podcast Directory.
- John Faunce Leavitt - former curator of Mystic Seaport.
- Theodore W. Houk - designer whose work is displayed
References
Notes
Bibliography
- Bray, Maynard; Fuller, Benjamin; and Vermilya, Peter (2002) Mystic Seaport Watercraft. ISBNÂ 0-913372-94-3
External links
- Mystic Seaport homepage
- Mystic Seaport Podcast(registration required)
- 360-Degree Panoramic Photographs of Mystic Seaport