Marine Link
Thursday, March 28, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

South Street Seaport News

22 Aug 2019

Waterford’s Tugboat Roundup Celebrates 20 Years

A modest event designed as a get-together for commercial workboat operators in upstate New York is now celebrating 20 years as a three-day community festival.On September 11, 1999, local resident John Callaghan had an idea to bring in some friends who ran tugs on the Hudson River and NYS Canal System for a quick one-day get together, right at the entrance to the famed Erie Canal. Callaghan, then a tug captain himself for the state canal system, brought in seven tugs and cooked several dozen hot dogs.

13 Jul 2018

McAllister Christens Tug Pair in NYC

Photo Credit: trouty

There's nothing like New York City for a maritime event, and McAllister Towing and Transportation Co., Inc., one of the historic family-run companies serving the industry for more than 150 years, held a signature ceremony and party last night at Pier 16 in Manhattan with the christening of two tugboats, the Rosemary McAllister and the Capt. Brian A. McAllister, both ABS classed FiFi 1 with propulsion systems meeting EPA Tier 4 emission regulations: 3516E Tier IV Caterpillar engines…

26 Mar 2016

Remembering Peter Stanford

Peter Stanford, founding president of the South Street Seaport Museum passed away on Thursday morning, 24th March 2016. We have lost our founder. We have lost a passionate advocate for our work.We have lost a friend. I first met Peter Stanford when I joined the Seaport Museum as Waterfront Director. He was visiting to advocate for an exhibition on the ship Wavertree. He spoke enthusiastically about a particular model in the Museum's collection, asserting that it must be a part of the project. As the visit wrapped up, he eagerly queried me on my background. Peter was a persistent man, endlessly insisting that the apparently impossible could be achieved. And in that - and as long as he and Norma were involved - he was quite right.

21 Jan 2015

Scale Model of Queen Mary to Anchor Onboard Gallery

Photo: The Queen Mary

A scale model of the famed ocean liner Queen Mary, carved about 80 years ago from a 200-year-old white mahogany log and exact in every detail, will be the centerpiece of a new gallery on the ship that was the epitome of luxury travel in its heyday. The 1/45th scale model, 21 feet long and weighing nearly 1,000 pounds (454 kg) includes a figure of Sir Winston Churchill on the afterdeck. It will be moved on Wednesday from New York's South Street Seaport Museum, where is has been housed for decades…

17 Jul 2014

Historic Navy Ship Baylander Shortly Open to New Yorkers

An historic U.S. Navy vessel that was originally deployed during Vietnam and later used to train U.S. helicopter pilots will temporarily dock at Pier 5 of Brooklyn Bridge Park (BBP) and for the first time be open for public tours. Free walk-up tours of the 'Baylander' are currently scheduled for weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. beginning July 26 through Labor Day, inform the owners, the Trenk Family Foundation. In advance of construction of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Marina, the Baylander IX-514 will open for tours as part of a larger program designed to highlight the history of the ship and its extraordinary background, as well as facilitate the Marina's community boating program.

14 Aug 2009

SNAME Elects New Fellows

On June 1, 2009, the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers announced new additions to its rank of Fellows. The membership grade of Fellow is accorded to individuals who have contributed to significant achievements in naval architecture, marine and ocean engineering, and related fields in the form of advances in design, research, production, operation, education, and associated management. G. Russell Bowler: As the Chief Engineer/Vice President of the largest and most successful sailing yacht design company in America, Russell has served as the lead naval architect in numerous groundbreaking designs. Mr. Bowler introduced modern composite construction to the Round the World Race of 1985/86 with the outstanding success of the maxi-yacht UBS Switzerland.

12 Feb 2009

SCI Celebrates 175th Anniversary

In 2009, the Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) celebrates 175 years of service to the maritime community, assisting the world’s over 1 million mariners with programs and services. From early days as a small, grassroots mission of the Episcopal Church, SCI has grown to be the largest and most comprehensive mariner’s agency in North America. To celebrate the significant heritage, the Institute hosts several special events in 2009, giving insight into the unique work of SCI. “The organization remains committed to its mission and continued work on behalf of mariners,” said John McGrath, Senior Development Officer at SCI. McGrath says that the events planned for the Anniversary celebrate a record of achievement and also showcase the importance of maritime commerce to the world.

08 Oct 2001

SCI: Disaster Relief on the Fly

On Tuesday, September 11, New Yorkers — and the world — were jolted into a day of terror and tragedy as two commercial jetliners plowed into the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center, leaving more than 6,000 missing persons. Seamen's Church Institute (SCI), a perennial source of strength and support for the International maritime community, went into action immediately, setting up a 24-hour relief effort that, over the course of the days following, has served as a safe haven for rescue workers, New York City police officers, firefighters and members of the Army National Guard. With its 175-year tradition of responding to mariners in need…

23 Oct 2003

Feature: Keeping the Port in Portland

We rolled into town on the last train north, arriving Portland, Maine at 2:00 a.m. Half an hour later we were at the dock, hauling our kit - and when Marine News travels light, we're like Hannibal crossing the Alps - over silent tugs resting abreast: Captain Bill, Justine McAllister, Stamford. On the phone a few days before, Capt. Brian Fournier had said something about leaving a light in Stamford's forward port cabin, and there, finally, it shone. But something brighter had caught our eye, and could we believe it? Last time we saw something like it, it was in Aberdeen, Scotland. Now, from Stamford's starboard rail, it loomed and glistened four hundred feet away - rising nearly as high - a pair of deep-sea drilling platforms, afloat waters barely up to their ankles.

24 Nov 2003

Vessels: Year Two A Tale of Tugs of Two Cities

It's been a year since MarineNews linked the dual tugmeets of the first week of September, one in New York City, the other upstate, at Waterford. Coupled, they make an interesting study, for their differences as much as their similarities. The tugs of New York City come in all sizes, but are typically large. Just as New York is a city of (many) skyscrapers, so it's a city of (many) monster tugboats, as harbor craft go. Waterford, a few miles north of Albany, is the gateway to the Erie Canal - is actually on the canal. While New York State's canals have renewed potential for commercial service, they're known most widely as recreational attractions for people who drive (many) large and pricey boats.

05 Apr 2004

Anyone Want to Restore a Tugboat?

You'd think it would be easy to start a tugboat museum. First, get an old tugboat. Clean-up some rust with a pad of coarse steel wool, slap-on a coat of paint, and presto, you're ready to sit in the booth and sell tickets. Everyone would applaud your efforts because, first, everyone loves tugboats and all they represent - solid construction and earnest purpose, hard work and benevolent contributions to civilization. And second, because old tugboats, all spiffied-up, are handsome sights, an alluring environmental decoration wherever they're found. And third, because the design of tugboats, like most of society's tools, has undergone great change, and the old ones are dying-off fast. You'd think everyone would support your labors at preserving a noble cultural heritage.

10 May 2004

What is in John Garner's Pocket

You don't really know a boat until she's hauled. Plying her trade on the water, her best half's submerged out of sight. We think we recognize her - "oh, there's Odin," or "Shelby Rose," or "Twintube" - but what are we seeing? The lines of the deckhouse, the shape and placement of the wheelhouse, the arrangement of the stacks? These are the parts known as the superstructure - "super," in this case, meaning simply "upon." It's a little like saying we recognize someone by his hat. The boat's defining structure starts at the main deck and goes downward from there. What little we see of it is low on the horizon. There's the deck's line, along with a smattering of bulwarks.

12 May 2004

Propulsion: Power for a New Breed of RoPax

Building fast RoPax vessels is nothing new for Australia's Austal Ships. The company, founded just 16 years ago, has quickly crafted a reputation as one of the largest and best builders of aluminum craft in the world, and today boasts an annual turnover in excess of $250 million. Spirit of Ontario, however, is in a different league. The ship arrived last month from its birth place Down Under to start work for Canadian American Transportation System on the commuter route between Rochester, NY, and Toronto, ON. Its inaugural route to work took it on tours through the Hawaiian Islands and eventually to Pier 17 at New York City's South Street Seaport…

03 Aug 2000

OpSail 2000: Parade Of Tall Ships Graces New York’s Waters

Founded in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy, Operation Sail (OpSail) has since found its way back to New York Harbor for significant events such as the Bicentennial celebration in 1976 and the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty in 1986. MR/EN was invited to step aboard the historic Schooner Wavertree, prior to OpSail 2000. By Regina P. Stepping aboard the historic Schooner Wavertree docked at New York's South Street Seaport, one would feel instantly immersed by the constant whirring of drills, hammering and workers being pulled up onto the vessel's masthead. No, it's not a group of 19th Century shipbuilders, but a modern-day group of individuals, some of who are volunteers, working to prepare the historic Schooner for its OpSail appearance.

11 Jun 2002

WQIS honored by Flag Raised on Peking

The Water Quality Insurance Syndicate was recently honored by a small flag raising ceremony as its flag was hoisted high atop the Peking, a retired vessel permanentlydocked as part of the South Street Seaport Museum in lower Manhattan. the South Street Seaport museum. States, and is dedicated to providing the broadest coverage in marine pollution liability and creating the most responsive organization to serve the needs of its clients. powered only by wind. manufactured goods to South America and to return via Cape Horn with nitrate. and towed to her current home at Pier 16. as tall as an 18-story building, the Peking is one of the largest sailing vessels ever built and the largest preserved by a museum. The Peking is open to visitors of the museum daily from 10am to 6pm.

05 Oct 2004

A Tale of Tugs of Two Cities Year: A Tough Season on the Circuit

It's been a rough year for tugmeets. Charleston, Boston, and Portland, whose Musters we've covered in the past, were respectively, skipped, canceled, and postponed. The World Ship Society tells us they'll be back next year with the Boston event, and the Portland muster, pre-empted by Hurricane Charlie, is taking place as this is written. We wish we could have gone north. While there are all sorts of good reasons to attend a tugmatch, we, being media people, think mostly about the good press they bring the business. The way things are shaping-up in such realms as national security, the price of fuel, environmental cleanliness and such, waterborne transport displays more and more advantage for the good of all.

08 Mar 2005

NY’s New ‘Taxi Driver’

If you want to call yourself a taxi in New York, you've got things to live up to. Take tradition. A New York taxi always beat everybody to the punch. It was the first away when the light changed, weaving through otherwise orderly rows of cars and trucks, just in time to beat the next light. The ride not only was fast, it looked fast. The driver, all the while, dispensed worldly wisdom on any theme, and if you asked, could name the best oyster bar in the entire city. He spoke New Yorkese - an "R," (if pronounced at all) could be a "W" or a "V" - but it was English. Etched in his mind was the map of the five boroughs, and all their one-way streets. He was friendly, considerate, and caring - waited until you were indoors when he dropped you off, before cruising away for the next fare.

10 Jun 2005

Talking About the John J. Harvey

Everybody talks about the John J. Harvey, and quite a few of them are doing something about it. The chipping, scraping, and painting you'd expect a 74-year-old fireboat to require has proceeded since the vessel became privately owned in 1999, but that's only the beginning of the discussion. For within the city the fireboat served for its first sixty years, a peculiar love/hate seems to have developed toward the harbor. That, more than leaks, can influence the future of the most historic of vessels, even as it affects contemporary ones doing their daily chores. The John J. Harvey was built for these waters in 1931, launched into them by the Todd shipyards at Brooklyn and serving them steadily, reliably, even heroically.

19 Apr 2006

Cruise Vessel Drifts Away

On April 16, a cruise ship known as The Spirit of Perth Amboy was untied and drifted about a mile from the Carteret dock into the Arthur Kill where it had become stuck in the mud near Staten Island. The incident occurred just hours before a noon Easter Sunday brunch cruise was scheduled to set sail, cruising past landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty and South Street Seaport. The ship was not damaged, and the Sunday holiday cruise, with 150 people, mostly families along with the crew, went off as scheduled. (Source: New Brunswick Home News Tribune)

11 Feb 2003

Derecktor Builds More Taxis

and six under construction. July and August 2003. checkered trim have been a notable part of the Manhattan waterfront. waterfront each year. existing piers. the Beard Street Pier in Red Hook, Brooklyn. and West 44th Street. a low-wake hull and a top speed of 25 knots carrying 54 seated passengers. the main deck. accommodated in dedicated spaces in the main cabin. a total capacity of 75 passengers), a small bar aft and an ADA compliant toilet. allows passengers to enjoy panoramic views of the cityscape during their ride. cruises. through Twin Disc gears, power the ferry.

09 Jun 2003

Feature: Seastreak: Outward Bound

While the fast ferries of SeaStreak were not the first to provide high-speed commuter service to the Highlands region of New Jersey, they were the first to be set-up by a Bermudan company. "Sea Container, Ltd., operates in three main areas," said SeaStreak's General Manager, David Stafford "marine container leasing, various leisure-bound operations, and passenger transport." SeaStreak falls into the third group, one of several comparable operations the parent company runs worldwide. They have fast ferry operations in the English Channel (Hoverspeed, Ltd.), fast and conventional ferry operations in the Irish and Baltic Seas (Man Steam Packet Co. and Silja Line respectively, the latter 50% owned). Sea Container also has railroad interests in the U.K. and Peru, among others.

07 Aug 2001

Janet M. McAllister Welcomed To NY

It’s ironic that New York City’s most powerful tugboat is named after two year old Janet M. McAllister, who, dressed smartly in a sailor suit, christened her namesake in a ritual at New York City’s South Street Seaport in late July. She is the daughter of Buckley McAllister, vice president and general counsel of the family-owned company. The event, to welcome the 96-ft. (29.2 m), 5,000-hp, Eastern Shipbuilding-built tugboat home, drew a crowd of industry and non-industry gawkers as the vessel was put through its paces off of Pier 16. Powered by a pair of EMD 12-645 E7B diesel engines which generate 5,000 hp for the Schottel SRP 1212 Steerable Kort Nozzle Rudder Propellers, the vessel is able to achieve a free running speed of 13.6 knots.

08 Aug 2001

Editor's Note

When two-year-old Janet McAllister christened her namesake in New York last month — the 5,000-hp, Eastern Shipbuilding-built Janet M. McAllister — a resurgence of maritime pride was evident at the South Street Seaport that had been missing from New York for years. The symbolism of a new generation from one of America's great maritime families inaugurating the most powerful tugboat in arguably the country’s most historic harbor was not lost. The event drew a healthy crowd of industry personnel, people with a vested interest in the boat or the storied towing company. But just as interesting was the throng of New York natives and tourist fixated on the event, as the vessel was put through her paces.