Schedule of Events
Friday, April 15
-10:00 a.m.-Boat building demonstration by local boat builders Fred Sawyer and Roger Pinholster throughout the day.
- The 1877 two masted, gaff-rigged, schooner the Governor Stone arrives in town and will dock at Riverfront Park for the festival.
Saturday, April 16
-10:00 a.m.- The festival begins. Antique boats, examples of classic and traditional vessels, workboats, and fiberglass and aluminum classics will all be on display on from 10:00 am -4:00 pm. Special highlights include authentic oyster boats, workboats, and home-built boats by skilled craftsmen, plus antique outboard engines. Antique automobiles will line Avenue E. Studabakers, Model A’s, Chevys and more. The classic, gaff rigged schooner, Governor Stone, will be featured dockside. Built in 1877, it has been totally restored and is an exhibit unto itself and is a National Historic Landmark.
-The Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve will have displays about the Apalachicola River and its flora and fauna, plus the Franklin County Seafood Workers Association will demonstrate oyster tonging.
-The Apalachicola RiverKeeper will be on hand with their boat to conduct informative tours on their brand new Riverkeeper boat and fleet of kayaks. Dan Tonsmeire will lead the power boat tours and Andy Smith will lead the kayak trips. The power trips will last approximately 1 hour and the kayak trips two hours starting 10 a.m. and finish at 4 p.m. Sign up at the RiverKeeper booth.
-The boat building demonstration continues.
-Archaeologists Kevin Porter be on hand at the Cotton Warehouse to speak about the Apalachicola Traders’ Canoe, a hand built 50-foot long vessel used between 1750-1850, recovered from the Apalachicola River. Kevin M. Porter is an Archaeologist III with Florida’s Bureau of Archaeological Research. His education includes Masters of Science degrees in Osteo-archaeology from Bournemouth University’s School of Conservation Sciences and Forensic Archaeological Sciences from University College London’s Institute of Archaeology and he has worked with archaeological specimens in Sweden, Greece, England, Alaska, and Florida. His most recent work on the Apalachicola Traders’ Canoe was published in the Historical Archaeology Journal. Kevin’s ties to the city of Apalachicola extend back to its early history and include both the Porter and Cook families.
-Master model boat builders John Ficklin, Richard Duval and Greg LaSchum will display of their craft at the Cotton Warehouse.
-An exhibit of marine art paintings, drawings, photography, ceramic wall murals at the Cotton Warehouse.
For information please call (850) 653-9419 or email us at info@apalachicolabay.org.
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