Welcome Aboard
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Where New York Begins
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Wavertree Today

Welcome Aboard, also, Where New York Begins, also, Wavertree Today. South Street Seaport Museum. , Welcome Aboard , Welcome aboard the 1885 cargo ship Wavertree., This remarkable ship is significant not because she was unique or interesting when she was built, but because she is the last full-rigged three-masted iron sailing ship in the world., Unlike speedy tea-clippers or prized racing yachts, Wavertree was among countless bulk cargo carriers, no different from the rail cars and tractor-trailers of today. For centuries, she and her contemporaries plied the world's oceans, moving cargo, carrying migrants, building cities, and exchanging ideas., Above all, Wavertree and ships like her made possible the global connections that enabled today's economic systems, cultures, languages, and nations., Where New York Begins , Take a moment to look at the East River and the waterfront as you see it now. Wavertree stands alone as a representative of her many sister ships who called at New York, and from New York, sailed to Hamburg and Hong Kong, to Callao and Calcutta, to Antwerp and Algoa Bay, to Sydney and Singapore. These were the ships that built the city behind you, connecting New York to a rapidly growing global trade network that made New York the busiest port in the world. Nearly all of these ships have been scrapped, sunk, or otherwise lost and forgotten, but today Wavertree stands as the archetype of the very ships that built America., Wavertree Today , Wavertree's life as a museum ship began in 1968 with pre-transit repairs to her hull. Since her arrival from South America in 1970, she has been lovingly cared for by Seaport Museum staff and volunteers. In 2015-2016 she underwent un unprecedented restoration bunded by the City of New York that returned her to near-sailing condition. Not since her dismasting in 1910 has Wavertree been the complete ship you see before you today., Pay close attention to the rigging, which is functional in every respect. Note the care with which her crew, both volunteers and professionals, have maintained her. They work to preserve the ship as an artifact, a classroom, and as a connection from New York to the rest of the world by water., The next steps in her restoration include important deck machinery, bilge pumps, and capstans. Over time, she will be returned to sailing condition with the ultimate goal of sailing her once again in New York Harbor.