A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
From the Photo series: A Closer Look: Explore Western New York’s architectural treasures series
The Buffalo Maritime Center at 90 Arthur St. in Buffalo celebrates the rich seafaring history of the Great Lakes as volunteers build, restore and repair wooden boats using traditional crafts. The center also has a foundry used to cast bronze marine hardware. An important part of the center's mission is to pass along boat-building know-how to the younger generation, and high school students can be found learning to build canoes and other boats.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Twice a week, students from Riverside High School and Buffalo Maritime Charter School work on building boats. Riverside High works on a St. Ayles Skiff, a 4-oared rowing boat, and two "six-hour" canoes. Here, Aaron Krehbiel helps Reshmi Chhetrm of Riverside High, work on a canoe. The inexpensive canoe, designed by founding member John Montague, can be constructed of two pieces of plywood.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The building at 90 Arthur St. in Buffalo was donated for use of the Buffalo Maritime Center by M&T Bank in 2013.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
This 1939 Tumlaren class sloop boat is being restored by Interlaken Boat Works, a wooden-boat building operation founded in 2017. The sloop is a Swedish racing class boat that sailed out of the Buffalo Yacht Club for many years under the name of "Mam'zell."
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The wood grain on the exterior of the 1939 Tumlaren class sloop boat being restored by Interlaken Boatworks.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
An overhead view of the main deck of the 1939 Tumlaren class sloop boat being restored by Interlaken Boatworks.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
A view of the instrument panel on the 1939 Tumlaren class sloop boat being restored by Interlaken Boatworks. It is a Swedish racing class boat that sailed out of the Buffalo Yacht Club for many years under the name of "Mam'zell."
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Clamps are an important part of boatmaking as they help secure newly epoxied parts during the drying process.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Chairman of the Board Joe Koessler re-covers the fully restored Honorah, built in 1938. It's a Rhodes Lake One sloop and came from Cleveland, Ohio. The boat, which is for sale, took one year to restore with a crew of volunteers.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Mike McNerney holds his brother Billy's dog, Pete. Pete is considered the shop dog.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The large main room is packed with boats large and small being built, rebuilt and restored.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Volunteers work on the new "Buffalo Wailer" which is a 20 foot version of the Lake Erie Shallop that was used for commercial fishing in the late 1800s. This two-masted sailboat will be used to introduce youth to sailing. The plans are for two adults to take six youth on overnight camp cruising trips around lakes Erie and Ontario. They will learn to row, sail and other seamanship skills. Dave Mambretti, left and Roger Maddigan work on the interior, Tuesday, March 19, 2019.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Brian McGowan, left and Richard Niesen, carry what will be a large oar for the Buffalo Wailer to the planer.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Donald Leslie sands the masts for the Buffalo Wailer. They are made in three pieces and hollowed out in the center to make them lighter.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The masts for the Buffalo Wailer are made in three pieces and hollowed out in the center to make them lighter.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Twice a week, students from the Buffalo Maritime Charter School work on building four Olmsted skiffs that will be used along with the others they've built as rental boats on Hoyt Lake in Delaware Park.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
One of the mentors Skip Hauenstein gets a good view to see how Devan Gate of Buffalo Maritime Charter School is doing with the sanding, Tuesday, March 19, 2019.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Brian Trzeciak, left, Director of the Buffalo Maritime Center, works with students Jacob Wright, center, Cecil Robinson, behind, and Christian Negron of Buffalo Maritime Charter School, applying epoxy before attaching the bottom section of the boat.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Tyler Wilson From the Buffalo Maritime Charter School planes a bottom section of the boat.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Tyler Wilson of Buffalo Maritime Charter School sands a section of the boat.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Twice a week, students from the Riverside High School work on building a St. Ayles Skiff and two 6-hour canoes. John Montague, the surviving founder of the Buffalo Maritime Center helps Ally Hassani, with a section of the six-hour canoe. The Buffalo Maritime Center wrote a book on making this simple canoe in six hours out of two pieces of plywood in 1994. Since then, thousands of them have been built around the world.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
John Montague, the surviving founding member of the Buffalo Maritime Center, helps Ally Hassani, with a section of the six-hour canoe. At right is student Joseph Kashindi of Riverside High. Montague and others founded the center at Buffalo State College and it was part of the design department there. When Montague retired he took it off campus and made it a non-profit organization in 2008.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
A clamp holds a newly epoxied piece on the six-hour canoe.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Mentor Aaron Krehbiel helps Reshmi Chhetrm, of Riverside High,install a gunnel on a six-hour canoe.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Clamps are an important part of boatmaking as they help secure newly epoxied parts during the drying process.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Twice a week, students from the Riverside High School work on building a St. Ayles Skiff and two 6-hour canoes. Mentor Carl Fenwick helps Esther Tuyizere, standing and Nelly Ngabo work on the St. Ayles skiff.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
These are the plans for the St. Ayles skiff.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Mentor Carl Fenwick gives a high five to Nelly Ngaio, of Riverside High, who attached a stem piece on the St. Ayles skiff. Standing is Esther Tuyizere. The students get to work with their hands and have a positive interaction with mentors.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Mentor Carl Fenwick helps Esther Tuyizer, of Riverside High, cut a piece of wood for the St. Ayles skiff.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Nelly Ngaio, of Riverside High, cuts a piece of wood for the St. Ayles skiff as mentor Carl Fenwick supervises.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
This large table saw comes with a safety mechanism which will immediately stop the saw if it comes in contact with any body part.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The conference room presently holds an original 1890 historic sailing canoe that is being restored. Eight people will paddle it the length of the Erie Canal this August.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The library upstairs holds a wealth of information on seafaring and boat making including the plans for many boats in its archives.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The library upstairs holds a wealth of information on seafaring and boat making including the plans for many boats in its archives.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
These are volumes in the rare book room in the library.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Model ships line the wall of the library.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
In the libraty is a wheel from an 1890s lake schooner.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
A painting of the packet boat that will be built at Canalside hangs in the library. It was painted by Buffalo Maritime Centeru2019s founding member John Montague. The packet boat will be built inside a barn being constructed at Canalside and visitors will be able to watch the three-year process.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The storage room is filled with many interesting boats and nautical paraphernalia.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Oars in the storeroom.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
In the storage room is a W.H. Field 1915 ship's saw which can cut timber 35 feet long. It will be used to cut wood for the packet boat replica to be built at Canalside.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The nameplate on a 1925 Coast Guard steam engine made by the Sterling Engine Company in Buffalo.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
Phil Sullivan restores the Starling IV, a sea bright skiff commissioned by his grandfather and built in a family boatyard in Braintree Mass., in 1952. Its predecessors, the Starling II and III were confiscated from his grandfather by the Navy during World War II for coastal patrol.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
These are deck pieces of a 1956 Chris Craft boat that will be put back into place like a puzzle.
A Closer Look: Buffalo Maritime Center
The Buffalo Maritime Center is open to anyone for a small membership fee. No boat-making experience is necessary. Those interested will be placed with mentors who will teach them boat-making skills.
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