NEWBURYPORT — The Black Dog will bring their tall ship Alabama to Newburyport for two days in early September.

The Black Dog, which opened a store in Newburyport earlier this year, will dock the ship on Sept. 2 and 3.

The ship, which is captained by Morgan Douglas, the company's general manager, will offer dockside tours both days and will also host a fundraiser for the Newburyport Art Association.

While the link between an apparel shop and tall ships may not be apparent, Douglas calls it the "simplest of time lines."

The Black Dog brand was started by Capt. Robert Douglas, who grew up dreaming of one day building a sailboat and living on Martha's Vineyard, setting sail with a black dog at his feet. In the 1960s, after serving in the Air Force, he made that dream a reality, though the Labrador/boxer mix — which he named The Black Dog — came later.

In 1971, Robert Douglas bought an old inn and opened a restaurant called The Black Dog, but Morgan, his third son, said his father "was always a sailor first, restaurant owner second."

The Black Dog apparel brand took off from apparel sold at the store, and now the shops are found from Maryland to Maine.

The ship Robert Douglas built was the 150-foot Shenandoah, modeled after the schooner Joe Lane, a revenue cutter built in 1850.

In 1995, he bought and rebuilt the Alabama, a 90-foot, gaff-rigged fore and aft schooner, originally designed by Thomas McManus and built by Pensacola Ship Building Co. Florida in 1926. Until 1966, it was used by the Bar Pilot Association in Alabama. It was then sent to Martha's Vineyard, where the hull sat until it was restored in a three-year effort by the G.S. Maynard Shipbuilding Co.

Morgan Douglas now sails the vessel to many of the ports that the Black Dog brand calls home.

"With the new location (in Newburyport), it's important to bring it there so people get a full picture of the company, instead of just one aspect," he said.

Dockside tours will be available both days. The Newburyport Art Association is scheduled onboard the ship on Sept. 3 from 7 to 10 p.m., for which tickets are required.

The boat carries up to 49 passengers on day sails and 27 passengers overnight in her two cabins, and there is a crew of six, according to the ship's Web site.

Morgan Douglas said he's never been to Newburyport, but said he hopes the visit will draw local maritime history buffs and laymen alike.

"The Alabama is a great testament to (maritime history)," he said. "It's about as close to a Gloucester schooner as you're going to get around here."