NOTE: The word ‘Great’ is in quote marks as the exhibit includes the Great Lakes AND inland lakes of NY.

Contacts:

Dave White, New York Sea Grant, E: dgw9@cornell.edu, P: 315.312.3042

Kara Lynn Dunn, Publicist, E: karalynn@gisco.net, P: 315.465.7578

Mark Malchoff, Lake Champlain Sea Grant, P: 518.564.3037

Beth Carlin, City of Plattsburgh, P: 518.563.7701



The Great Shipwrecks of NY’s ‘Great’ Lakes exhibit that includes panels on Lake Champlain and Lake George shipwrecks will visit Plattsburgh, NY, from February 6 to April 28, 2017. Photo: Mark Malchoff, Lake Champlain Sea Grant.


Plattsburgh, NY, February 3, 2017 - The City of Plattsburgh, Lake Champlain Sea Grant and New York Sea Grant have announced that the Great Shipwrecks of NY’s ‘Great’ Lakes Traveling Exhibit will be open to the public in the second-floor atrium, adjacent to the auditorium, at City Hall in Plattsburgh, NY, from February 6 through April 28, 2017. Admission to the exhibit from 8 am to 4 pm Monday through Friday is free.

The Great Shipwrecks exhibit features shipwrecks spanning more than 200 years across New York State, highlighting fascinating details about the historic underwater wrecks and landscapes in Lake Champlain, Lake George, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes, and the St. Lawrence River.  

The exhibit complements the “For Want of An Anchor” HMS Confiance exhibit, interpreting the loss of the British flagship in the Battle of Plattsburgh, September 11, 1814, in the first-floor rotunda at City Hall.

“It is an honor for the city to host this wonderful testament to the rich history all around us. To make such a beautiful and historic building available for such an exhibit overlooking our great lake is fitting,” said Plattsburgh Mayor Colin Read.

“We are excited to share this exhibit with Lake Champlain basin residents. The underwater cultural resources of New York State are a treasure and Lake Champlain holds some of the state’s most important military artifacts from the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812,” said Lake Champlain Sea Grant Aquatic Resource Specialist Mark Malchoff.

New York Sea Grant Associate Director Katherine Bunting-Howarth, Ithaca, NY, relates the historical aspect of the shipwrecks exhibit to safety awareness for today’s boaters and coastal economics, noting, “This exhibit enhances public understanding of New York’s maritime history and the risks individuals took to pioneer that heritage. It offers a unique historical perspective to spark learning and discussion about current economic opportunities to our waterways, commerce and coastal hazards.”


New York Sea Grant initially developed the Great Shipwrecks exhibit for the 2014 Great New York State Fair. Since then the exhibit has traveled as an educational resource hosted by State University of New York campuses; Tyler Art Gallery, a teaching gallery for art and museum studies students at SUNY Oswego (early 2015); the Museum of Science and Technology, Syracuse, NY (Spring 2015); Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Basin Harbor, VT (Summer 2015; part of which is pictured here); Lake Erie Seaway Trail Center, Hamburg, NY (late Fall 2015-early winter 2016); and Tom Ridge Environmental Center, Presque Isle, PA (March-April 2016).



More Information

New York Sea Grant coordinated the Great Shipwrecks exhibit development in partnership with the Great New York State Fair, Great Lakes Research Consortium, and Great Lakes Seaway Trail, with support from Lake Champlain Sea Grant, the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, and others. Federal funding for The Great Shipwrecks exhibit was secured through a Great Lakes Seaway Trail National Scenic Byway grant.

The City of Plattsburgh is located on Lake Champlain in Northeastern New York State about 20 miles south of the Canadian border, and east of the 6.1 million-acre Adirondack Park. Plattsburgh was founded by Zephaniah Platt in 1785 and is currently home to approximately 19,000 people. Mayor Colin L. Read is in his first term as the City leader. Plattsburgh’s history includes a rich maritime heritage that includes the nearby wreck of the canal schooner Troy and the steamboat Champlain II Underwater Historic Preserve. Learn more under Discover Plattsburgh at cityofplattsburgh.com.

Lake Champlain Sea Grant, a cooperative program of the University of Vermont and State University of New York at Plattsburgh with offices in Burlington and Plattsburgh, is dedicated, since 1999, to improving the understanding and management of Lake Champlain, Lake George, and their watersheds for long-term environmental health and sustainable economic development. For updates on Lake Champlain Sea Grant activities: www.uvm.edu/seagrant has Facebook and Twitter links.

Lake Champlain Sea Grant and New York Sea Grant are among the 33 university-based programs under the National Sea Grant College Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Through its statewide network of integrated services, NYSG has been promoting coastal vitality, environmental sustainability, and citizen awareness about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources since 1971.


More Info: New York Sea Grant

New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York, is one of 33 university-based programs under the National Sea Grant College Program (NSGCP) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The NSGCP engages this network of the nation’s top universities in conducting scientific research, education, training and extension projects designed to foster science-based decisions about the use and conservation of our aquatic resources. Through its statewide network of integrated services, NYSG has been promoting coastal vitality, environmental sustainability, and citizen awareness about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources since 1971.

New York Sea Grant maintains Great Lakes offices at SUNY Buffalo, the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark and at SUNY Oswego. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University and Cornell Cooperative Extension of New York City, Brooklyn College, and in the Hudson Valley through Cooperative Extension in Kingston. 

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube links. NYSG produces a monthly e-newsletter, "NOAA Sea Grant's Social Media Review," via its blog, www.nyseagrant.org/blog. Our program also offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/coastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published 1-2 times a year.