Georgetown Wooden Boat Show
The Harbor Historical Association of Georgetown will present the 28th Annual Wooden Boat Show on Saturday and Sunday, October 21 and 22, 2017. This year’s show will feature one of the nation’s best wooden boat exhibits, a wooden boatbuilding competition, a cardboard boat regatta, children’s model boatbuilding, knot tying, maritime art & crafts, food and music. All events will take place on the waterfront and along Front Street in Historic downtown Georgetown. Admission is free to the public. The Wooden Boat Show is produced by the Harbor Historical Association, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. All proceeds will benefit the South Carolina Maritime Museum
The Southeast Tourism Society has selected the Georgetown Wooden Boat Show as a Top 20 Event in the Southeast for October.
Georgetown Wooden Boat Show from Above it All Studios on Vimeo.
Saturday, October 22 from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
More than 140 classic wooden boats will be displayed in the water and along Front Street. Vessels ranging in sizes from kayaks to cruising yachts will be exhibited in categories including: row, canoe, kayak, surfboard, sail, inboard power, outboard power, owner designed and built, century class (100 years or older), model boats and “classic” categories for boats that are aged 50 years or older. Visitors will be able to meet and talk to wooden boat craftsmen, manufacturers and owners. Maritime art & crafts will also be on display.
The Wooden Boat Challenge will begin at noon under the big tent on Broad Street. Two-person teams will race to build a rowing skiff within a four-hour time limit. At 5 p.m. the competitors will test their completed skiffs for seaworthiness in a rowing relay across the Sampit River. The teams will be scored on speed of construction, quality of work and rowing speed. Cash prizes will be awarded to first, second and third place winners.
At 7 p.m. an awards ceremony and banquet will be held for boat exhibitors, boatbuilding competitors, sponsors and guests. Prizes will be presented to the winners in each of the exhibit categories as well as the People’s Choice Grand Award winner, to the Six Knot Challenge winner, and to the winning Wooden Boat Challenge competitors.
Sunday, October 21, from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.
In addition to the wooden boat exhibits and maritime arts and crafts, family activities will include an Opti Pram regatta featuring the SC Youth Sailing program’s fleet of wooden Optis, knot tying with Dan the Knot Man, and kid’s model boat building.
Sunday will feature the Second Annual Cardboard Boat Regatta. Visitors can preview the cardboard boats from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. under the big tent on Broad Street. The Regatta will begin at 2:30 p.m. when the cardboard boats are launched on the Sampit River from the floating docks at Francis Marion Park. The Pride of the Fleet Award will be given to the boat that best combines innovative engineering with artistic design, while the Team Pride Award will go to the team with the greatest spirit and crowd involvement. The Titanic Award will be presented to the boat with the most dramatic sinking.
The Georgetown Wooden Boat Show is produced by the Harbor Historical Association, a 501(c)
(3) tax-exempt organization. For more information, to register a boat for exhibit, or to sponsor
this event contact Georgetown Wooden Boat Show, PO Box 2228, Georgetown, SC, 29442; or
send an email to boats@woodenboatshow.com. Visit the website at www.woodenboatshow.com.
South Carolina Maritime Museum – In 1996, the Harbor Historical Association launched a dream to create a museum that would celebrate the maritime history of South Carolina and Georgetown, the state’s second largest port. In 2011, with community support, the South Carolina Maritime Museum opened on the waterfront in historic downtown Georgetown.
Home to the prized Fresnel lens of the old North Island lighthouse, our mission is to create enjoyable experiences for both young people and adults by featuring photographs, documents, artifacts, and interactive exhibits related to South Carolina’s rich and remarkable maritime history.