Welcome to the Sitka Maritime Heritage Society
We are a 501(c)3 nonprofit in Sitka, Alaska dedicated to preserving and sharing our region's rich maritime heritage.
Our main project is the rehabilitation of the Japonski Island Boathouse, a WWII Navy boat shop and marine railway, as a working maritime heritage center.
We produce a great newsletter full of historical and other articles on our maritime heritage, photographs and articles on Sitka's maritime history, a history blog, oral history programs and videos, activities, classes and other programs on maritime history, heritage and skills.
Join us! Become a member; contribute to our capital campaign; buy a t-shirt!
THANK YOU to our members, donors and sponsors!
Our main project is the rehabilitation of the Japonski Island Boathouse, a WWII Navy boat shop and marine railway, as a working maritime heritage center.
We produce a great newsletter full of historical and other articles on our maritime heritage, photographs and articles on Sitka's maritime history, a history blog, oral history programs and videos, activities, classes and other programs on maritime history, heritage and skills.
Join us! Become a member; contribute to our capital campaign; buy a t-shirt!
THANK YOU to our members, donors and sponsors!
Toy Boat Kits for Children
An example of a completed boat, and the wooden parts of one of our kits. Kits also include some acrylic paint and small paint brushes.
Robert Modrell Photo Gallery and History
Dedication of the Shore Boat Arrrowhead, whose hull was repaired and superstructure built by students of Bob Modrell at Mt. Edgecumbe High School.
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Because we can't bring kids to the Boathouse to make boats, we are giving away the kit with everything you need to do it at home.
Order your kit from our online store, then pick it up on December 12 between 10 am and 2 pm, outside the Japonski Island Boathouse. You can also choose to have it mailed to you (which will be after December 14) by choosing the shipping option in the check out. (Mailed kits won't have paint.) You'll see a way to make an optional donation, which is a much appreciated way to support the Sitka Maritime Heritage Society and our work! You can also become a member! Memberships now are good through March of 2022. New! Shop SMHS Merchandise - Members Receive 20% Discount
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Eadweard Muybridge Retakes - 1868 to 2017
In 2017, James Poulson went to the places where Eadweard Muybridge took photographs in 1868. Check out this and more on our Photos and Articles page.
Summer 2020 Newsletter Features Sailing Sitka Sound
The Patchy Fog, an 18' Marshall Sanderling Catboat. Read the story in the newsletter!
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Check Out the Draft Sitka Maritime History Walking Tour!
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In the News: Spruce Siding Delivered!
CUSTOM DELIVERY – Laura Bennett, executive director of Sitka Maritime Heritage Society, right, watches as crew of the M/V Otter, Captain Thomas Sigmond, Adina Scott and Micheal Janicki, unload a shipment of wooden siding from the WWII-era boat Thursday at the sea wall on Katlian Street. The wood was custom milled last year at Tenakee Springs to match the shiplap siding on the WWII era Japonski Island Boathouse. It will be used to replace sections of worn out siding and to sheath a new addition. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
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Join SMHS or Renew Your Membership now (valid until 03/2022):
Want to get involved?
Subscribe to our email list to be notified of upcoming events and new volunteer opportunities.
In 2020 So Far . . .
We were fortunate to hold our Annual Meeting, on "Close Calls and Lessons Learned" at the historic ANB Founders Hall just before gatherings like this had to be postponed.
Since then, we've put that and other videos on line; check out the talk at the Mean Queen a couple years back with the late Richark K. Nelson and our own Josh Wisnewski, finding common inspiration and gratitude from hunting experts who shared their knowledge with them, 40 years apart, in Northwest Alaska.
We distributed toy boat kits to families to build at home; we created a History Blog, and filled it with the narratives of two, different fox-farming fishing families of the Goddard area in the 1920s and 1930s.
We now have a really great boating checklist, the first comprehensive yet handy list we've found, generated out of our annual meeting; we even published three newsletters, with some interesting local maritime content.
We downsized our work parties to provide ample social distance. We were awarded a Historic Preservation Fund grant by the Alaska Historical Commission, administered through the City and Borough of Sitka as a Certified Local Government. Those work parties have been going on most Saturdays; if you are interested, please contact us - we are using skilled volunteers right now, but maybe you have what we need!
Check out some photos from this year's work here, including images of our shipment of Sitka spruce siding!
Check out the new history narrative, to be a Walking Tour of Sitka, featuring the 1800s history that is hard to find.
Coming up? a newsletter, our December toy boat making event will be transformed into kits to do at home, we'll be launching a survey for you to weigh in on ideas for next year.
A board member recently moved away, meaning we have an opening! If you are interested, drop us a line by email or call!
And thanks again, to our members, donors and sponsors. Your support is essential as we apply for grants and to do the work!
Since then, we've put that and other videos on line; check out the talk at the Mean Queen a couple years back with the late Richark K. Nelson and our own Josh Wisnewski, finding common inspiration and gratitude from hunting experts who shared their knowledge with them, 40 years apart, in Northwest Alaska.
We distributed toy boat kits to families to build at home; we created a History Blog, and filled it with the narratives of two, different fox-farming fishing families of the Goddard area in the 1920s and 1930s.
We now have a really great boating checklist, the first comprehensive yet handy list we've found, generated out of our annual meeting; we even published three newsletters, with some interesting local maritime content.
We downsized our work parties to provide ample social distance. We were awarded a Historic Preservation Fund grant by the Alaska Historical Commission, administered through the City and Borough of Sitka as a Certified Local Government. Those work parties have been going on most Saturdays; if you are interested, please contact us - we are using skilled volunteers right now, but maybe you have what we need!
Check out some photos from this year's work here, including images of our shipment of Sitka spruce siding!
Check out the new history narrative, to be a Walking Tour of Sitka, featuring the 1800s history that is hard to find.
Coming up? a newsletter, our December toy boat making event will be transformed into kits to do at home, we'll be launching a survey for you to weigh in on ideas for next year.
A board member recently moved away, meaning we have an opening! If you are interested, drop us a line by email or call!
And thanks again, to our members, donors and sponsors. Your support is essential as we apply for grants and to do the work!
Boathouse 2020 Capital Campaign
This year we were excited to kickoff our Boathouse 2020 Capital Campaign, with the goal of raising funds to match larger foundation grants to complete and open to the public with regularly scheduled programming and events for the community. Boathouse 2020 will allow the Boathouse to be filled with life and activity on a full-time basis!
A Few Highlights from 2019 - to see pictures from 2020 and more go to Events and Boathouse pages!
Knots WorkshopIn April 2019, we were proud to present “The Knots You Need” a workshop on some of the most widely used and essential knots for any mariner (or everyday life!). Instructor and Board Member, Stan Barge did a fantastic job of guiding participants – many of whom were novices – through progressively more complicated knots. The group started with a square knot and worked up to a trucker’s hitch! All participants went home with an illustrated booklet of how to tie each knot learned (plus a few more advanced knots) and line to practice on. Look out for more hands-on workshops from SMHS!
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4th of July CruiseThe sun and wildlife were out for our 4th of July cruise this year! During the outbound trip, Rebecca Poulson took us on a fascinating journey through Sitka’s history with her talk on shipbuilding at Sitka, and once we reached St. Lazaria, naturalist Matt Goff made the journey even more special by sharing his wealth of wildlife knowledge with our passengers.
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2019 Boathouse Work Parties
The Japonski Island Boathouse is looking a bit different these days through the support of a Historic Preservation Fund grant. This Spring, a new addition shell was built, which will eventually serve as the main entrance to the Boathouse as well as house bathrooms and office space. Additionally, the main Southwest wall of the original building has received a facelift with the help of many, many volunteers. Each original piece of siding was carefully numbered and removed, then insulation, plywood sheathing and an infiltration barrier were installed. The original, repainted boards were then refastened to the building, with a few new replacement boards, milled to match the originals, taking the place of earlier repairs. This work makes the wall sturdier and weatherproof. So much effort has gone into doing this work on the wall and it’s great to know that it’s just as improved on the inside as it looks on the outside! Thank you so much to all of the dedicated community volunteers who have donated their time and skills to this project!
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Don Sineti at the BeakThis October we had a great time gathering at The Beak for an evening of sea chanteys by Don Sineti, organized together with Sitka Whalefest.
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Earthquake: RevisitedFor the Alaska Day 2019 theme of "Frontier First Responders" we invited the community to the library for a viewing of a video of stories told by Sitkans about their experiences during the 1964 earthquake, followed by discussion by Larry Calvin and stories from the audience. It was great to see how many folks came out for the event and were eager to participate and share.
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