Merrimack River Maritime Festival sailing along

By Angeljean Chiaramida
Staff writer

May 07, 2008 12:16 am

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SALISBURY — You could wake up one morning in mid-July, look out at the Merrimack River and think you've been transported back to the 19th century. From July 17 to 20, as many as half a dozen historic sailing ships will be dropping anchor off Salisbury's shores.

The Merrimack River Maritime Festival, being planned by the Salisbury Beach Partnership, will celebrate the graceful sailing ships that mirror the region's maritime past. It is the second festival the partnership is planning to offer this summer — the first is the Sand and Sea Festival, June 28 and 29.

The partnership is working to bring in four to six vessels — class B and C historic sailing ships ranging in size from 60 to 150 feet long. The ships will arrive and drop anchor in the Merrimack River, right off the Salisbury Beach State Reservation, where they will be clearly visible from downtown Newburyport.

Ships will anchor in the river, parallel with the state park pavilion. To visit the ships, the public will walk across from the park on a bridge made of barges anchored to the riverbed. Vessels will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

In addition to the maritime event, the Landside Festival will take place in tents near the pavilion.

Landside Festival events are growing in number and now have an educational component, Salisbury Beach Partnership director Kathy Aiello said. For example, students from Salisbury Elementary School will be part of a maritime art show planned for one of the festival tents.

Also planned are festivals of food, music and entertainment, including knot-tying demonstrations, maritime history exhibits, a pirate show and nautical storytelling fit for all ages. A fireworks display over the river is also in the works.

Partnership leader and Salisbury businessman Wayne Capolupo announced last September that the seafaring-related festival would follow the Sand and Sea Festival this year. The Maritime Festival brings together the Salisbury Beach Partnership, Salisbury Chamber of Commerce and Sail Boston, the organization that has orchestrated many historic ship visits in the past.

Capolupo said he has always been inspired by the romance and adventure of sailing ships of old, and he jumped at the chance to bring them back to Salisbury/Newburyport Harbor.

This region's history is full of tales of square and fore-and-aft rigged sails flying from masts of the working ships that define this area's proud shipping heritage, Aiello said.

Although the event is presented by the partnership, many local, state and federal agencies have been very cooperative, Aiello said.

"This type of event takes getting a lot of permits, and the agencies involved have been great," Aiello said yesterday. "We recently worked with the Salisbury Conservation Commission, which went very well. And we've had many great meetings with (the state); they've been incredibly cooperative. This is turning out to be a really nice partnership."

In addition, the Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Coast Guard are involved in reviewing the plans for the river portion of the event, including the arrival and departure of the ships, and the barge bridge, which will be built by Capolupo's construction crew at SPS New England.

Because of the educational and the wide-ranging community aspect of the festival, Aiello said, both Comcast and the Institution for Savings have signed on as $20,000 sponsors. But, Aiello said, that shouldn't frighten off others who want to get involved.

"No contribution is too small," Aiello said. "We have an Adopt-a-Plant and Flower Friend level for those who'd like to help us beautify Salisbury Beach. And we always need volunteers. Every bit helps."

For more information on the Salisbury Beach Partnership, visit, www.sbpi.org, or call 978-462-7274.

To keep current on the Maritime Festival, visit www.beachfests.org over the coming months.

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