Experts to Explain History and Science of Ship’s Hull on World Trade Center Site

The Tribute WTC Visitor Center and the New York Academy of Sciences will present "An Historic Hull on Hallowed Ground: Three Experts Discuss the 200-Year-Old Ship Next Door," a free public event at 7:30 pm on Thursday, September 30.

The Tribute WTC Visitor Center, a museum that tells the personal stories of September 11th, and the New York Academy of Sciences, which is headquartered in 7 World Trade Center, have invited an archaeologist, a conservationist, and a maritime historian to present a behind-the-scenes look into the 18th century ship remnant that was discovered in July at the World Trade Center reconstruction site.

Michael Pappalardo, the supervising archaeologist for AKRF at the World Trade Center, Norman Brouwer, a maritime historian specializing in New York City maritime history, and Nichole Doub, head conservator at the MAC Lab which is stabilizing the unearthed wood, will each explain the work they have done to help understand the story of this surprising discovery 25 feet below street level.

Mr. Pappalardo will show images of the ship where it was found and discuss its relationship to the archaeology of the site. Ms. Doub will talk about removing and transporting the ship and the painstaking work of stabilizing the wood in a premier laboratory for this type of work. Mr. Brouwer, formerly of the South Street Seaport Museum, will hypothesize on the voyages of the ship and compare it to other ship remnants found in Lower Manhattan over the past 30 years.

Although the ship bears no direct connection to the original World Trade Center, some of its characteristics resonate with more recent history. A curator found what is believed to be a coin from the mast-stepping box, which would have been placed on a new ship to bring good fortune to future crews, according to ancient Greek maritime custom. The recently launched USS NY, which was made with 7.5 tons of steel recovered from the World Trade Center, had symbolic coins placed in its mast-stepping box when it was built.

The two institutions presenting this program, Tribute, on the south side of the World Trade Center site, and the New York Academy of Sciences, on the north side, are united in their interest in bringing information about this historic aspect of the World Trade Center neighborhood to light.

"An Historic Hull on Hallowed Ground" will take place at the New York Academy of Sciences, 7 World Trade Center, 250 Greenwich St., 40th floor, at 7:30 pm, Thursday, September 30. The event is free and open to the public, but advanced registration is required. Members of the public and media, please register at www.nyas.org/historichull.


About the Tribute WTC Visitor Center and the New York Academy of Sciences

The Tribute WTC Visitor Center is located at 120 Liberty Street along the south side of the World Trade Center site. The center was created by the September 11th Families’ Association to share the personal stories of victims, survivors, rescue and recovery workers, volunteers, and residents of Lower Manhattan. By engaging visitors in the authentic experiences of those most affected by the events of February 26, 1993 and September 11, 2001, the center’s five galleries and its walking tour program convey the courage, grief, and heroism of those who responded to the tragedy and the steps taken towards working for a more peaceful world by many of those impacted by the events.

The New York Academy of Sciences is an independent, not-for-profit organization committed to advancing science, technology, and society worldwide since 1817. With close to 24,000 members in 140 countries, NYAS is creating a global community of science for the benefit of humanity. NYAS' core mission is to advance scientific knowledge, positively impact the major global challenges of society with science-based solutions, and increase the number of scientifically informed individuals in society at large.