If you haven’t been to the newly re-opened South Street Seaport Museum, winter break is a good time to plan a visit. The renovated museum is a cool combination of historical information, model building and contemporary installation techniques. The Museum is a very short car/subway trip from Brooklyn and there is always tons to do at the South Street Seaport afterwards: from shopping to eating at a good restaurant for a lunch break. Here are 8 things you can see with your kids on a visit to the museum.
Super Models: Ship Replicas from the Collection showcases two dozen magnificently crafted ship models selected from among the South Street Seaport Museum’s collection of more than 2,500.
Bottled Up: Miniature Vessels from the Collection presents ships in bottles from the collection of the South Street Seaport Museum. Ships include beautifully detailed miniature schooners, clippers, barks, and other sailing vessels. Also on view is a special “spoiler” installation that allows kids to learn the secret of how those boats fit through the necks of those tiny bottles.
Ship Breaking: Photographs by Edward Burtynsky provides kids with an opportunity to see how decommissioned ships are dismantled.
Handheld Devices: Tools from the Collection showcases hundreds of hand tools that were used in boat building, repair, and shore-side industries. Touch screens allow kids to learn how the tools were originally used, introducing them not only to ship use of saws, hammers, planes, but to dividers, fids, and marlin spikes.
Family Programs: Adults with children ages 6 to 9 can visit a Museum exhibition with a professional educator for a family-friendly discussion and craft project about how objects and images tell the story of the past. Topics will include the island’s geography and ecology, what life was like in New Amsterdam, and more. Every other Saturday. Reservations necessary:(212) 748-8676 or reservations@seany.org
Mini Mates: drop-in program for children ages 18 months to 3 years old learning hands-on through arts and crafts, music and movement, play, and story time. Reservations required:(212) 748-8676 or reservations@seany.org
Mannahatta: Manhattan in 1609 – Kids can see what Manhattan looked like 400 years ago through large-scale digital renderings of seven locations on the island of Manhattan, including Times Square in 1609.
Waterline – see the cool overhead sculpture made of string and sinkers
Details:
South Street Seaport Museum
12 Fulton Street
New York NY 10038.