South Street Seaport Museum Is Reopening For the First Time Since Hurricane Sandy

By Samantha Neudorf March 15, 2016

After being closed for more than three years, the South Street Seaport Museum is finally reopening its doors on March 17.

The South Street Seaport Museum was flooded during Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and had to make repairs to the escalators, elevators, heating, electrical, and air conditioning systems.

The historical Fulton Street museum will debut it first exhibit since 2012 called “Street of Ships: The Port and Its People.” The exhibit will feature art and artifacts from the museum’s permanent collection related to the seaport at South Street from the 19th century, including the history of Wavertree: a full-rigged sailing cargo ship from 1885.

Wavertree is currently undergoing a $13 million city-funded restoration in Staten Island, but will return to the Seaport in July. The “tweendeck”—area between the cargo holds and main deck—is being reinstalled to be used for museum programming. There will also be a living laboratory for STEM and other educational programs aboard the ship.

The Street of Ships exhibit will be on display on the ground floor, as the rest of the museum is still under construction. Bowne & Co. Stationers on Water Street—the museum’s print shop counterpart—briefly closed after Hurricane Sandy but was able to reopen.

Your Complete Guide to the South Street Seaport Museum

Photo courtesy South Street Seaport Museum