The Waterfront Museum - with a showboat and floating classroom aboard is coming to Kingston. As part of “BLUE LINKS 2005, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Barge #79, built in 1914, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places will dock at the Kingston Maritime Museum August 12th to 21st. It is the only floating wooden covered barge of its kind.

BLUE LINKS 2005 is a project sponsored by the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance and features historic NYC vessels and their annual tour of upriver ports-of-call. Vessels this year include the John J. Harvey Fireboat, the NY Central 13, and the Lehigh Valley RR Barge #79.

As a showboat, Barge #79 has pioneered a path to the waterfront over eleven years for tens of thousands through its “CIRCUSundays in June” and “Sunset Music” series. During the Kingston visit, variety performances will feature professional performers from around the globe who will dazzle, delight and mystify you. In addition musicians from the popular “Sunset Music Series” will present original works in authentic showboat style spirit. The shows are complemented by an art exhibition hung on the barge walls.

The Museum will arrive around noon on August 12 for a week of festivities. On August 13 from 12pm-2pm, we invite you to come aboard for our Open House and meet Captain David Sharps. Later that evening, from 6pm-9pm join us for a concert on the barge featuring Buddy Mondlock and Chris Thompson.

CIRCUSundays, presented by Artistic Director Karen E. Gersch will run two shows at 12:30pm and 3pm on August 14 featuring: Billy Bones - The Good Pirate, Barge 79 Captain David Sharps - Chinese Vase Manipulation, Fran Sperling - Aerial Trapeze, Nathan & Sarah Carver - Singer & Saw, Will Shaw - The Eccentric Juggler.

CIRCUSundays returns at 12:30pm and 3pm on August 20 featuring: Chris Chiappini - 2003 Int. Jugglers Assoc. Junior Champion, Dikkie Ellis - The Clown Prince of the Slackwire, Dalia and Sophie Sharps - Debut of The Duo Trapeze Act, Torkova - Award winning magician and conjuror, Meghan Bourke - Aerial Lyre, Cap'n Mary - The Pirate Lady.

The Hudson River Maritime Museum will showcase the art exhibit: Sequins to Sawdust: Art from Circus Life. In addition, we are offering maritime educational programming to groups by reservation, please contact us for details.