It was a notable week with Tuesday's Jibboom Club class in celestial navigation and the use of the sextent led by Bill Andrews - upper right; and Saturday's excursion to Fishers Island with Pierce Rafferty, (and with an extra stop at the annual exhibition for Lighthouse Works resident artists), above.

This week: take our fun & fascinating, 90-minute Find your lighthouse! cruise - Wednesdays & Saturdays, 11:30 AM to 1 PM.
Click here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2557359
Above: passengers on Friday's Sunset Tour. What a moon this week!  

The Custom House Maritime Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday, from 1 to 5 PM. 
 
What's Up at the Custom House - August 21, 2016
New London Maritime Society - nicely nautical & totally Thames
NIMBLE ARTS SUMMER CIRCUS 
next Sunday, August 28
with FREE performances at 4 and 6:30 PM
 
Make a full family afternoon of it in downtown New London Sunday,
when the City of New London with New London Maritime Society present the renowned  Nimble Arts Summer Circus, on New London's Parade Plaza, with FREE performances at 4 and 6:30 PM. 

Back for a 5th year, this small circus troupe has become an annual New London summer happening. Smart, funny, sophisticated, Nimble Arts will surprise you with their internationally award-winning circus arts: trapeze, juggling, comedy, acrobatics. Prepare to be amazed!  
& a little earlier that afternoon 
attend a Juggling Workshop taught by circus artists
Sunday, August 28, 2 at PM  
Please sign up at least 24 hours in advance.

The learn-to-juggle workshop takes place Sunday, August 28, just prior to the first circus performance, from 2-3 PM, for a fee of only $15, all materials provided.  Questions? call 860-447-8700.


Everybody loves Nimble Arts Summer Circus. Why not make a day of it?
Start by learning to juggle with real circus clowns at 2,
take timeout at 3 for an ice cream cone,
walk over to Parade Plaza to watch Nimble Arts Circus perform at 4,
then stay downtown for dinner!
If you're like me, you'll be back again at 6:30 to catch the 2nd show.
It's a great day in New London.

This is International Lighthouse Weekend. 
Who won the contest for the best New London Harbor Light photo?
I am lucky enough to see this beautiful beacon every single day and as much as I love both the beach and the lighthouse on sunny days, I think my favorite time to head down to Bullard Beach is to watch a storm roll in. This panoramic photo was taken with my iPhone in July of 2015.
Anne Lizarralde, New London, CT

& we have four additional winners
Louise Fabrykiewicz - Couldn't resist entering the lighthouse contest.
 
Margie Heap - Picture taken 2 weeks ago from a friend's waterfront patio.     
 
 
Gregg Jacobson - The light is actually the morning sun reflecting off the glass of the lighthouse.
 
Phil Medberry - I took this photo last fall as the trees began to change.
 














It's nice to know that people are keeping an eye on Harbor Light.
Every image was taken from a different angle circling around the lighthouse, and it also looks like we have images from every season.
Congratulations to you all, and thank you for sharing these lovely photos of a beloved New London icon!



Each of our winners will receive an Alan Claude 2017 calendar from the MUSEUM SHOP & a one-year family membership to New London Maritime Society! 
Custom House Maritime Matters - Public Access TV

Our submarine exhibition opens August 31. 
Submarine Memorabilia from the Collection of Ed Uditus: 1940s through 1990s, with additional items from Axel Westerberg and the New London Maritime Society Collection. 

also on view 
行って来い.   To go and return
The influence of Japan and America on the ceramic works of Albert Sussler at the Custom House Maritime Museum through September, 2016. 
  
We thank Joanne Cain, Carleen (shown here), & Chelsea Groton Bank for their generous donation of $100 to New London Maritime Society.
Carleen brought the check by last week and took time to tour the Custom House. She hadn't been here since she toured the museum with her class when she was nine!
the Frank L. McGuire Maritime Research Library
Three different, but related, projects are underway in the library. We'll announce them later this fall.
Below NLMS Librarians Brian Rogers and Laurie Deredita and volunteer Gretchen van der Lyke hard at work last Thursday.

An Island Cabina boat tour out of Noank,
with Steven Jones
September 10, Saturday, 11 AM to 12 NOON

This special boat tour, led by Stephen Jones
is presented in partnership with the Noank Historical Society. Tour the Islands off Noank, where author Arthur Henry penned his 1902 book, An Island Cabin, in which five disparate friends from the Big City occupy a simple summer cabin--and things devolve from there.  Sign up at brownpapertickets.com/event/2566726.
Above, our July Island Cabin tour.   Wat ch the video
Limited to 20 passengers, we tour aboard the Popeye, which leaves out of Noank for this special excursion. $35.

Copies of An Island Cabin are available for $10 at the Custom House and Noank Historical Society, and also can be mailed for an additional $6 postage. Call 860-447-2501.

from the collections

Volunteer Dirk Langeveld has been researching the background of the letters he transcribes for us. Here he investigates the relationship between Alexander Hamilton and Jedediah Huntington, the first collector at New London. This letter from Alexander Hamilton was written to the Customs Collector of New London in 1794.
 

In 1789, the year before he founded the Revenue-Marine (precursor to the USCG), Alexander Hamilton founded US Customs. 

Dirk writes: It turns out the letter from Hamilton is part of a general set of inquiries he made regarding whether to use domestic or foreign sailcloth for the first six frigates commissioned by the federal government, including the  Constitution. Looking into that, I found that there's a wealth of correspondence between Hamilton and Huntington available online, much of which relates to the original Harbor Light. Here are some highlights:






The New York Public Library specifically says it has a large collection of correspondence between Hamilton and Huntington , so if you're planning a trip to the Big Apple you might want to schedule some time there.

Charter Oak Federal Credit Union is giving away $100,000 over the next 93 days. Working with Charter Oak, your donation to the Maritime Society can be doubled! 
Clink HERE to make a donation.
 
Please print & fill out the top portion of the form and then mail it with your donation to us:
New London Maritime Society
150 Bank Street
New London, CT 06320.  

Thank you!  --New London Maritime Society
KEEP UP WITH WHAT'S UP - click on the links below to keep connected  
 
Elena Zamolodchikova performs on the harpsichord on August 27th at 6:30
at  Watch Hill Chapel 
From Cats to Cyclops: Un Bal de Personnages
Musical portraits, characteristic dances and a prince's concerto. Music by C. P. E. Bach, J. S. Bach, J. Bull, F. Couperin, L.-C. Daquin, J. Dowland, J.-H. Fiocco, J. K. F. Fischer, J.-P. Rameau J.-N.-P. Royer and D. Scarlatti. 
 
At left: Elena and Aymeric Dupre la Tour perform at the Custom House Maritime Museum. 

Custom House Maritime Museum is on Facebook. 'Like' us to keep up with our events as well as news about museums, worldwide, and issues related to our mission of preservation & conservation.
 
Facebook New London Harbor Light   reports the latest on NL Harbor 'Pequot' Light and about American lighthouse preservation activities. W e thank the Chester Kitchings Family Foundation for their generous pledge of multi-year support to our efforts at Harbor Light!
We wish we could offer tours to Harbor Lighthouse and continue working towards that end.

At right, Rob Pittaway raised the US Lighthouse Service pennant for International Lighthouse Weekend.

Facebook Race Rock Lighthouse posts news concerning Race Rock Light and international lighthouse tourism & preservation efforts.

Facebook page Lighthouse Inn, New London keeps up with developments at that City landmark. We also post events of local interest. It's going back up for auction...

Go to facebook  Long Island Sound Lighthouses Gateway, our newest page, to learn more about lighthouse happenings in the region, including the several Connecticut lights now up for sale.

Facebook page Sentinels on the Sound presents our Summer 2016 events program along with other NL summer activities. This is where we post all notices of current activities.

Facebook Custom House MUSEUM SHOP  to see what's new. The MUSEUM SHOP is open Wednesday through Sunday, between 1 and 5 PM, or by appointment. You don't need a museum ticket to get in.   

Below: Roger Riley and a surprise guest on Friday's Sunset Lighthouse Tour.

Have a sparkling day!

New London Maritime Society | 150 Bank Street, New London, CT 06320 | 860-447-2501
nl maritimesociety.org