Waterfront Museum in Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York, NY

We Have Arrived! May 28^th This summer, our floating museum is undergoing a drydock campaign to repair shipworm damage and protect the hull from further deterioration. We need additional funds to complete the work so please consider a contribution. Captain's Log, 6.05.02 The Barge successfully arrived at Drydock after 43 non-stop hours of towing by the Benjamin Elliot Tugboat owned by Rob Goldman of Troy, NY. Capt. Goldman, Capt. Ann Loting superbly navigated our way up the Hudson, through two locks in fair weather and one thrilling voyage. The crew totaled eight emergency crew to man the pumps, generators, and occasional leaks, two photographers and a 3 person camera crew producing our project documentary. The many waterfront communities during the active Memorial Day weekend supplied sights, sounds and boat traffic. Capt. Kevin Hennings and the SEADLER provided us with an escort and a chance for sensational image recording. Especially exciting was our Red Hook Departure and passing under the bridges, some of which we cleared by only one inch after taking off our flagpole, chimney stacks and boiler vent. A special thanks goes to the work of scuba diver Lenny Speregen who beefed up our bow with 3/4" plywood and secured a tarp which provided added protection from the tugboat's prop wash.
After a day of preparations, the barge floated into the NY State Canal Corporation's Drydock facility and sat upon the ways as water was pumped out of the basin. We hit our center marks within two inches. The barge creaked,groaned and shifted a bit in several places as we settled upon the ways. Uncovering copper and plywood from the hull exposed extensive shipworm damage. A marine surveyor has confirmed that our frames are in good order to accept any planking. The bow and stern need entirely new planking below the waterline as expected. Both sides, especially where previous copper sheeting remained are fine and don't need replacement. The bottom planks which are 3" and not the 4" expected are badly wasted at the ends and have a consistent 1" to 1 1/2" of worm damage. This means 50% of the material is no longer there. Upon consultation with our master shipwright David Short, we are now expecting to replace the entire bottom.
During the night last evening, 2 1/2 planks fell off the stern all by themselves. As the barge dries out and as we remove caulking and pound on the vessel removing rubbing timbers, old timers with experience told us to expect this . Still it is a shocking occurrence and fully supports our intention to respike the entire vessel. It is encouraging to know that we took the proper steps to get here, that we are in the right place, and all that all that needs repair for a sound hull are underway.
To date we have raised approximately $100,000 with two major grants awaiting final decision. We now expect to need another $130,000 to complete our project. We encourage everyone and anyone wishing to contribute to do so knowing that with your help and support we can complete our Barge Preservation Project and return to our Showboat Operations by the fall of this year. We have not lost our pioneering spirit and we are confident that sound judgement, hard work and determination will make up for what we may lack in wealth and past experience. All Photos (c)2002 Frank Zimmerman
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