There are many maritime-themed museums in U. S. coastal states. The main focus of most is the culture and history of an area, including displays that emphasize the vessels that were used, often commercially, to help that region grow. Displays include historical photographs, media accounts, assorted documents, artifacts, and restored boats -- all pertaining to maritime evolution along the local waterfront. But when it comes to featuring all of that and especially recreational boats of the past, few compare to the aptly named Antique Boat Museum of Clayton, New York.
A Classic and Historical Beginning
Located in the 1,000 Islands region of the St. Lawrence River, the Antique Boat Museum traces its roots to a 1965 classic boat show put on by the then-new 1,000 Islands Museum. That became the Antique Boat Show, a component of the 1,000 Islands Museum’s Shipyard Museum, which in turn was chartered on its own in 1986, four years later to become the Antique Boat Museum.
Boat and Exhibit Expansion
Today, the nonprofit Antique Boat Museum is one of the largest maritime museums in North America. It sits on 1,900 feet of St. Lawrence River shoreline with 1,600 feet of dockage and 4.5 acres of public program space. It possesses ten buildings with 29,000 square feet of exhibit area and 20,000 square feet of boat collection storage.
The Antique Boat Collection
There are now more than 320 antique boats in the museum’s collection. Most of these are wooden, but the museum collects boats constructed of various materials with the mantra being that they date from the earliest days of pleasure boating to forty years before the present, and that they be consistent with the museum’s mission. It “collects, preserves, interprets and celebrates boats and related artifacts to advance public understanding of the importance of boating to the cultural history of North America and the St. Lawrence River in particular.”
Tours, Rides, and More
Other museum features:
• Included in admission packages to the museum is a 30-minute tour of the luxurious 106-foot-long houseboat La Duchesse, which was built in 1903 for George Boldt of New York City’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
• There are thousands of artifacts related to boating history in the museum, and displays related to a wide array of boats.
• Educational materials: There’s a large collection of searchable materials related to boating, boat building, engines and motors, and regional history in the Lou Smith Library and the Marion Clayton Link archives.
• Exhibits: Currently the museum’s Small Craft Building features special exhibits on paddlecraft and the St. Lawrence River skiff, and other buildings feature a wide array of maritime and regional exhibits.
• Classes and Rides: Boat builders of all experiences can find a variety of classes on this craft, and a forthcoming workshop on boat building is in planning stages. There are also classes on many other subjects as well as free rowing and sailing opportunities, river rides, and sunset cruises.
