Syracuse, NY, September 3, 2019 - The Maritime Heritage showcase at this year's Great New York State Fair, which ran from August 21 through September 2nd at Syracuse's NYS Fairgrounds, featured a century-long snapshot of recreational boating that included vessels such as: a 1913 runabout with original equipment; Country singer Alan Jackson’s 1955 cruiser “Flat Top”; The 1929 Chris-Craft Sedan “Topper”; and a Mullins Steel Sea Eagle.
The “Cruising through the Ages” exhibit was sponsored by The Great New York State Fair, New York Sea Grant, the Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York, and Oswego's H. Lee White Maritime Museum and organized by New York Sea Grant (NYSG) with several contributing partners.
On select days at the Fair, personnel with NYSG, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, Great Lakes Research Consortium, and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry were available for "Ask the Expert" events, during which they answered visitors’ water-related questions.
Nearby on several days, the Great New York State Fair and The Antique Boat Museum offered free “On the State Fair Pond Skiff Rowing” opportunities, providing life jackets for all participants.
New York Sea Grant Coastal Recreation and Tourism Specialist Dave White, right, welcomed New York State Fair Director Troy Waffner to the new Maritime Exhibit. The Great New York State Fair, New York Sea Grant, Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York, and H. Lee White Maritime Museum of Oswego, NY, partnered to sponsor the exhibit featuring 100 years of recreational boating in New York State. In the background wearing a crew hat is Claire Wakefield, Curator of the Antique Boat Museum of Clayton, NY, which provided vintage watercraft, including a 1913 runabout, for the exhibit. Credit: NY Sea Grant.
On YouTube, On Air: Local Media Takes Note
Many of the activities that took place in this corner the NY Experience area of the Fair were highlighted by a number of media outlets, including:
(a) The Palladium Times, Oswego County News Now and other local newspapers and blogs, including ILoveNY.com;
(b) TV stations such as North Country's Spectrum News (available on for Spectrum customers in the Central New York region including Syracuse, Ithaca, Utica, Watertown, Binghamton, Elmira and surrounding areas in upstate New York); WSYR TV Channel 9 ABC-affiliate's Syracuse station; and CNYCentral.com/ Channel 3 News Syracuse (an NBC News affiliate station), the latter of which re-aired an interview with NYSG Recreation and Tourism Specialist Dave White on the pond numerous times
Additionally, WWNY TV 7 (a Watertown-based CBS-affiliate), provided a preview of the maritime exhibit on August 16th. Claire Wakefield (curator at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton) is featured, saying that the exhibit covers 100 years of the state's boating history. The museum -- a first time contributor at the Fair and co-sponsor along with the display's organizer, New York Sea Grant -- contributed five of its boats, including a skiff that people were able to row on the pond.
(c) Radio stations such as WTNY 790 AM Watertown and WFRG-FM Big Frog 104.3, the latter of which is a country music station in Central New York.
On August 20th, 104.3 FM listeners were not only encouraged to visit the Fair, but also be sure to check out a piece of boating history with a tie to Upstate New York, country music, and Alan Jackson.
Jackson's Chris Craft, a rare 1955 29-foot boat that was part of this year's exhibit, was donated to Clayton's Antique Boat Museum in late 2013, at which time the radio station had the opportunity to talk with the museum's Michael J Folsom, who put the boat's value in the high six figures. You can stream a clip below, in which Folsom explains Alan's restoration of the boat and the time he has spent in The Thousand Islands.
If you don't see the player above, it's because you're using a
non-Flash device (eg, iPhone or iPad). You can download the mp3 file by clicking here (mp3). It may take a few minutes to download, so please be patient.
Jackson named the boat "Flat Top" after the acoustic guitar he plays on stage. It wasn't Jackon's first trip to the boat museum. Folsom says he brought five boats to their annual auction in 2009 and cruised the Thousand Islands in his yacht "The Neon Rainbow."
If you don't see the player above, it's because you're using a
non-Flash device (eg, iPhone or iPad). You can download the mp3 file by clicking here (mp3). It may take a few minutes to download, so please be patient.
Credit: Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Alan Jackson; (inset) Antique Boat America.
In Photos: Boats, Both Historic and Modern, Seen by the Exhibit's Many Visitors
NYSG's Dave White (at left) talked with reporters on a media tour as the 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Heritage Exhibit was taking shape on set-up day. More than 16 watercraft populated the exhibit that also includes two showcase buildings. Credit (for this and all photos below): NYSG/Kara Lynn Dunn.
New York Sea Grant gained a "special guest educator" when this Madison Future Farmers of America (FFA) member stopped by The History of Sturgeon in NY display at the Maritime Exhibit and stayed awhile to share his enthusiasm with other 2019 Great New York State Fair visitors.
(At left) This barge wheel was recovered with permission from a 1945 shpwreck and is part of the collections at the H. Lee White Maritime Museum. (At right) The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary was at the 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Exhibit with a daily drawing for a free boating class for up to four people.
The Cornell University Biological Field Station provided this "History of Sturgeon in NY" display. NYSG added a sturgeon photo against which children visiting the Fair could stand to see how they measure up to a nearly five-foot-long fish.
Shipwrecks, sturgeon, and daily boating class weren't the only attractions drawing in Fair-goers by the droves. So were boats like this 1913 Matthews high-speed runabout. Originally named "Skanendowa" and later renamed "Golden Years," it is the oldest vessel in the 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Heritage showcase exhibit. The boat has its original lights, instruments, hardware, copper gas tank, and Scripps 4-cylinder engine intact.
Modern-day propulsion and design boats were also included in the 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Heritage exhibit showcasing 100 years of recreational boating in 20th-century America.
This St. Lawrence skiff moved from the 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Heritage Exhibit to the State Fair Pond on four days (August 23, 26, 29 and 30) for special public opportunities to row the boat made possible by the Great New York State Fair and The Antique Boat Museum of Clayton, NY.
Visitors walked the Great New York State Fair Maritime Exhibit dock to see historic vessels on loan from the Finger Lakes Boating Museum, Antique Boat Museum, and H. Lee White Maritime Museum.
Visitors of all ages enjoyed touring the Great New York State Fair Maritime Exhibit mini-Maritime Museum building with Lighthouses and Life-Saving and History of Sturgeon in NY exhibits.
Visitors on the first of four Ask the Experts Days at the 2019 Great New York State Fair talk with U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary about boating safety.
More Info: 2019 Great New York State Fair Maritime Exhibit Sponsors and Partners
Sponsors: Great New York State Fair, New York Sea Grant, Boating Industries Association of Upstate NY, and H. Lee White Maritime Museum of Oswego, NY
Partners: Empire Dock & Lift, Baldwinsville, NY; Antique Boat Museum, Clayton, NY; Finger Lakes Boat Museum, Hammondsport, NY; Great Lakes Research Consortium, Syracuse, NY; SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY; Cornell Biological Field Station, Bridgeport, NY; Great Lakes Seaway Trail; Lake Champlain Sea Grant, Plattsburgh, NY, and Burlington, VT; Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vergennes, VT; Smith Boys Marine with locations across NYS; and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary
More Info: New York Sea Grant
New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York (SUNY), is one of 33 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program.
Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources.
Through NYSG’s efforts, the combined talents of university scientists and extension specialists help develop and transfer science-based information to many coastal user groups—businesses and industries, federal, state and local government decision-makers and agency managers, educators, the media and the interested public.
The program maintains Great Lakes offices at Cornell University, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Oswego and the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University in Long Island, Brooklyn College and Cornell Cooperative Extension in NYC and Kingston in the Hudson Valley.
For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube links. NYSG offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/nycoastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published quarterly. Our program also produces an occasional e-newsletter,"NOAA Sea Grant's Social Media Review," via its blog, www.nyseagrant.org/blog.
