Participate in #MaryWhalen83. PortSide is excited, after a pandemic hiatus, to be celebrating the 83rd birthday of our ship MARY A WHALEN's with a series of outdoor events on Saturday, May 22 (Rain date Sunday). If you post your photos of the day to social media, please tag it #MaryWhalen83 so we can find it. Come learn about our exciting engine restoration project and enjoy activities for kids and adults. Can’t make it and want to support? You can donate on Venmo @PortSideNY or this link.

We have scheduled events over the course of the day to spread visitors out, some on deck and some in PortSide's pop-up park. There is 1 free virtual tour of the ship from 10:30am to 11:15am. Zoom audience capacity is 100. Register here.

Visitors are invited to wear vintage fashion from 1938 & 1958, memorializing MARY’s launch date and rechristening date. We will have a vintage 1950’s car on site for photo ops plus our Salty Selfies photo station.  We will judge at 5pm. If you will not be here at that time, ask us to photograph you before you leave.  Post your photos to social media with #MaryWhalen83.   Winners get to have a party for up to 10 people on deck at another time.

Here's the full schedule:

10:30am to 11:15am. Free virtual tour of the ship on Zoom. Register here.

Events running 12 to 5 – all in Park

• Art table (MARY related coloring pages, make birthday cards for Mary)

• Line throwing and knot tying

• Salty Selfies photo station by our mock wheelhouse

• Vintage 1950’s car photo op

• Vintage fashion 1938 & 1958

• Kid’s book give-away!! We are offering a LOT of lightly read books in English and Spanish courtesy of the Friends of Sunset Park. Books for K-5 range.

Scheduled events on deck & in the park

1:00 on deck: Kids Tankerman training (hatch dogs, blocks, cargo boom)

1:30 TankerTour (for up to 4 people) won by raffle in advance via social media. Masks must be worn while inside the ship.

2:00 on deck: Kids book reading of autobiography of our ship cat Chiclet

2:30 on deck: Poet Billy Cancel recites his new poems and talks about how the MARY inspired him

2:50 on deck: Sing happy birthday and birthday cake

3:00 on deck: Marine Critters explained by scientist Emma Garrison

3:30 TankerTour (for up to 4 people) won by raffle on site. Masks must be worn while inside the ship.

4:00 on deck: kids book reading by Kat Savage, beloved Red Hook librarian.

5:00 in park: 1930s/50s Fashion judging and end of all events

Due to COVID, we are NOT offering our usual birthday open-house style TankerTours. There will be only two in-person tours of the ship, for a group of up to 4 people, determined by raffle.

Film at 9pm
A screening of the documentary “LAVENDER LAKE”

Director Allison Prete’s 1999 documentary about restoration efforts of the Gowanus Canal, a waterway where the MARY WHALEN delivered fuel.  Opened in 1866, the canal was hailed as "one of the shortest and most important waterways in the world." After decades of industrial use and then neglect, it became one of the world's dirtiest bodies of water, was dubbed "Lavender Lake," and became a Superfund site. 

As everyone is not vaccinated yet, seating is limited to 35. Register here. We ask for a $10 deposit that will be returned when you arrive.