Hello little Ghosts and Goblins, Warlocks and Witches, Mermaids and little Captains:

Maritime Gloucester invites you to get in the Halloween “Spirit” Saturday, Oct 29 from 1pm to 5pm.

The Maritime Gloucester campus will be transformed into a spooky and fun place for kids to play and create. We have a bunch of thrills and safe chills up our wizarding sleeves in store!

• Shiver your timbers with our Pirate on the Pier for a treasure hunt escapade.
• Sing along with the Bard on the Shipyard as we shanty up some fun.
• Our Warlock on the Dock will be creating magic wands for sale to little wizards on our shipyard lathe.

Kraken fish printing, Dwarven delicacies, and drinks will be available for sale!

This is a free event for members, donations and memberships appreciated! Costumes are ALWAYS encouraged.

Join your favorite non-profits this weekend as we clean up our coastlines, the harbor, and our beaches. In honor of last week’s World Ocean Day, Maritime Gloucester, Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute, Gloucester Gig Rowers, UMass Amherst | Gloucester Marine Station, and Ocean Alliance have teamed up for a community-wide volunteer effort.

Depending on the numbers of volunteers, various land-based locations will be covered. Gloucester Gig Rowers will be cleaning by boat, and boaters are welcome to join in! Once you sign up, you will be given location information!

Saturday, June 18, 8:30am

Sign up today at http://www.maritimegloucester.org or directly at https://signup.com/go/eENYjgH

Maritime Gloucester anticipates the promise of summer with a week of maritime skills training. Our Spring Working Skills Series is celebration of traditional skills presented by three superstar women of the maritime heritage field. Check out the introduction to planking with Carolyn Corbin, find out what you need to know to safely prepare for you next small boat excursion with Arista Holden, or hear about traditional sailmaking practices with some nods to modern techniques with Susannah Winder. Come join us from the comfort of your home for a night of fun and learning.

This program is sponsored by @MassHumanities Bridge Street Fund and is FREE to the public, but you must RSVP to come.

Go to our website at www.maritimegloucester.org to register today.

The Maritime Gloucester 2021 Winter Lecture Series goes virtual every Tuesday this March! This year’s roster focuses on the iconic vessel that defines our heritage and captures our hearts: The Schooner. With discussions of design, glimpses from past harbors, tributes to the fishing fleet and the men that drove it, and current legends that carry on the tradition…this lecture series goes in-depth with five entertaining and informative sessions.

Virtual space is limited and RSVPs are required. Go to http://www.maritimegloucester.org to register today.

We kick off the series on March 2, 2021 with Maritime Gloucester’s own Justin Demetri presenting Evolution of the Schooner: A Story in Half Hull. Presentation and Q&A to follow.

Deck the Docks is coming to a close this weekend! Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm, Harbor Loop is the perfect spot for any last minute gifts! Deck the Docks is our annual event that supports local artists and brings Maritime Gloucester cheer!

Our Holiday By The Sea Gift Shop is full swing with great items from great local artisans including 

Hold Fast, Offcuts by Giacalone Contracting, FishPrintLady, Glass by Kristine, Melissa Cox Photography, Lanes Creek Pottery, Paintings by Audi Souza, and the Maritime Gloucester Gift Shop.

(shhh….Don’t forget to stop by our 50% off “outlet section” for great gifts for under your tree)

While you are there, pick up your map of Winter Lights! on Cape Ann. Tour the light displays at all 150 participating businesses! Start your discovery at Maritime Gloucester and see the lights on our pier and on Harbor Loop!

AND…make sure to check out the Deck the Docks Virtual Art Show 2020, hosted by seArts and Maritime Gloucester! Browse the catalog here and get some art to deck your walls! Contact info@searts.org for more information.

Shop Local, Support Local Artists and Artisans! A percentage of all sales will support the mission of Maritime Gloucester. See you this weekend.

It is with much sadness that we announce the cancellation of the 36^th Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival. Maritime Gloucester and the Gloucester Schooner Festival Committee worked diligently to create alternative options and try to keep this signature celebration going, but the realities of the pandemic and growing concerns for participants and spectators made this a necessary and timely decision.

The Gloucester Schooner Festival is one of Cape Ann’s most beloved cultural events. This gathering of schooners, hosted by Maritime Gloucester, is made possible by the volunteer efforts of over 30 people and local organizations who serve as committee members, as well as the many sponsors and donors who fund the event. Raising money and planning for this weekend is a year-long process and we do not take cancelling it lightly!  We had held out hope that there would be a window of opportunity by Labor Day, but it is time to make the call.

“No one is more disappointed than Maritime Gloucester, the Committee, and the Schooners to not be able to offer the Festival this year,” states Michael De Koster, Executive Director of Maritime Gloucester. “While it is a difficult decision to make, we all know that this is the right call and needs to be done sooner rather than later. For the sake of our volunteers, organizers, sponsors, visiting schooners, crews, and city officials, the time to cancel has to be now.”

This year’s Festival would have commemorated the 100^th Anniversary of the International Fisherman’s Cup race. “Maritime Gloucester had planned a summer-long series of exhibits, visiting vessels, and programs that would have culminating in one of the best Schooner Festivals to ever grace Cape Ann,” added De Koster. “But the pandemic has changed those plans. We need to make sacrifices and smart decisions now so that we all can return to school, work, and promote the general health of our community.”

Maritime Gloucester is looking forward. The 37^th Annual Festival planning has started.  “Without the revenues and sponsorships from this year’s events, we will need to work twice as hard to raise funds for next year’s celebration,” states De Koster. “Although we are cancelling our event, we cannot cancel the cultural importance and love of this Festival throughout the community.”

Maritime Gloucester plans to celebrate the 100^th Anniversary of the International Fisherman’s Cup race by repackaging this year’s cancelled exhibits and programs into a series of events, virtual programs, and lectures throughout the coming year, leading up to a great 101^st Anniversary and 37^th Annual Festival in 2021.

We thank ALL of the wonderful sponsors, donors, volunteers, City officials and workers, and the Cape Ann community for their efforts and support!

Michael De Koster, Executive Director, Maritime Gloucester

Daisy Nell Collinson, Chair, Maritime Gloucester Schooner Committee

Show your gratitude thia pre-Thanksgiving weekend by helping Maritime Gloucester’s Gloucester Gig Rowers during our blood drive. We are saluting those who battle Leukemia, specifically honoring our own rower, Suzyn Ornstein who is fighting this battle today. All who give receive a $5 Dunkin Donuts gift card.

We are pleased to partner with Dana Farber, Brigham Health, and Dunkin Donuts to make this effort possible.

Maritime Gloucester is working hard to get ready for the 2nd Annual Deck the Docks, December 4 through 7!

• Visit the Deck the Walls Art Show co-hosted by seArts (see below)
• Select and get your Christmas tree from us this year, direct from Maine and loaded on your car by our helpful staff
• Buy a beautiful Holiday Wreath from us and you can decorate it in our DIY workshop
• Visit our Pop Up Gifts Shop with local makers, crafters, and artisan bringing you unique holiday gift ideas and options
• Come and make your own gifts in our Holiday DIY Workshop, including fish printing, lobster buoy ornament painting, wreath decorating, and pre-school crafts for the kids.  Also, come and do fish buoy painting with our Art Haven partners!
• Take pics with Santa in a Dory
• Get your signature gifts in our own Maritime Gloucester Gift Shop.
• Enjoy music from roaming Christmas Carolers with Gloucester Stage’s Holiday Delights.
• There will be hot cider, cocoa, and a lighted pier at night.

Today’s Star feature:  Our “Deck Your Walls” Art Gallery (thanks to partner group seARTS!) seARTS put it best:

We put out the call for art and were FLOODED with response. So the walls will be FILLED with incredible works from incredible artists from Cape Ann and [way] beyond!
It’s a perfect way to get a great gift for the holidays, support Artists and support Maritime Gloucester, and we hope you’ll join us for the show, the reception, and do some of your gift shopping in the BEST way possible!

Volunteers for the event are still needed.  Contact us at info@maritimegloucester.org if you would like to be part of this great event.

This Thanksgiving, show your gratitude by helping Maritime Gloucester’s Gloucester Gig Rowers during our blood drive.  We are saluting those who battle Leukemia, specifically honoring our own rower, Suzyn Ornstein who is fighting this battle today.  All who give receive a $5 Dunkin Donuts gift card.

We are pleased to partner with Dana Farber, Brigham Health, and Dunkin Donuts to make this effort possible.