Working on Water
A Floating Exhibition Celebrating
New York’s Maritime History
1914 wooden covered barge Lehigh Valley 79
Tentative Tour Schedule:
Schedule to be announced
Please check back for schedule updates.
Due to berthing and depth constraints, not all vessels will be at all tour stops. Expected vessels can change without notice.
The “Working on Water” floating exhibition featured more than two dozen historic vessels traveling the waters of Lake Champlain, Champlain Canal, and the Hudson River. Heritage vessels docked at various waterfront communities where the public was invited to tour and ride aboard many of these historic boats.
Vessels participating in the Working on Water floating exhibition included: 1901 tug Urger, 1907 tug Pegasus and 1914 wooden covered barge Lehigh Valley 79, 1931 fireboat John J Harvey, 1949 tug Cornell,1956 tug Gowanus Bay, 1930 tug WO Decker, 1938 tug Chancellor, 1927 tug Governor Cleveland, 1923 tug Buffalo, 1921 motorship Day Peckinpaugh, 1945 PT Boat PT 728, replica 1862 canal schooner Lois McClure, steam lighthouse tender Lilac, steam launches Hestia, African Queen and Mary Theodora, dutch barge Golden Re’al, replica gunboat Philadelphia II, and replica ship Half Moon. Due to berthing and depth constraints, not all vessels participated at all tour stops.
The tour included hands-on maritime educational programs, music, tugboat races and other unique opportunities to reconnect with our waterways. Many boats are crewed by professional mariners with experience working on the waters around New York and they shared lore and stories about life and work aboard today’s commercial vessels. Programs, boat tours and rides were free to the public at most exhibition stops.