Sail 250: Massive, Beautiful Tall Ship Fleet Honors America’s 250th

We are only hours away from the official 250th anniversary of American liberty, and all across the land (and sea), events are starting to happen to mark the occasion. One of the more picturesque of these is the various Sail 250 celebrations, in which magnificent tall ships take to the water to mark this great day. Even Texas, which belonged to Spain in 1776, is joining in.

Texas is making history participating in America 250 and Sail 250 events.
The 1877 ELISSA, a square-rigged iron barque, the official Tall Ship of Texas, is participating in Sail 250 events along with other tall ships.
Sail 250 is a global gathering of tall ships and military ships porting in several U.S. cities to celebrate America’s Semiquincentennial. More than 60 ships in an international fleet are participating.
America 250’s Sail 250 celebrations began in New Orleans Memorial Day weekend. International ships first ported in the Gulf city from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, the Netherlands, Peru, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Uruguay, The Center Square reported.
Sail 250 ships next celebrated in Norfolk, Virginia, and Baltimore, Maryland. They are celebrating July 4 in New York City. Celebrations will conclude in Boston, the birthplace of the American Revolution, from July 11-16.

There are few things as magnificent as these grand old ships. And for their time, these were incredibly high-tech; these were big, complex, sophisticated things, and one wonders if today, even with modern engineering and computer support, if anyone today could use the same materials: Oak, canvas, hemp rope, iron, and copper - and make a ship that would be more capable and more efficient than these.

And, look at that video; they are not only sophisticated, but also beautiful.

Ships from around the world, it seems, are participating.

In New York City, free tours are available at Sullivans Peir in Staten Island, piers in Brooklyn Bridge Park and piers at South Street Seaport. Ships porting in New York have traveled from Italy, Uruguay, Sweden, Spain, France, Poland, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Argentina as well as ships from Maine, Maryland and Massachusetts.
In Boston, participating ships are from Italy, Canada, Uruguay, Poland, Chile, Sweden, Colombia, Germany, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Spain, Argentina, Romania, the Netherlands, Portugal, Bermuda, India, the British Virgin Islands and the U.S.
One tall ship participating in Boston is the Mayflower II, a full-scale reproduction of the Mayflower, which arrived in Plymouth Harbor in 1620. More than 25 million people have walked across the Mayflower II decks to learn about the dangerous journey English Puritans took seeking religious freedom in the new world.

If you're anywhere near any of these places, this looks like a heck of a show.

Happy 250th Birthday, America: We Now Live Twice As Long As We Did in 1776

This is an appropriate event, because the navies in the world at the time of our revolution had ships much like these. Oaken ships and iron men, they did battle with muzzle-loading cannon and musketeers in the tops, ships disappearing into and re-emerging from huge clouds of black-powder smoke. It's hard to imagine such a scrap, but scrap they did, notably in 1779 when one of America's first naval heroes, John Paul Jones, with his ship, the Bonhomme Richard, engaged the British HMS Serapis, and uttered his famous warning: "I have not yet begun to fight!" And it was, of course, the French fleet that blockaded Yorktown, engaging the British, with 24 French ships of the line against 19 British ships. They whupped the Brits, preventing them from relieving General Cornwallis's troops at Yorktown, forcing that final surrender.

Fighting or not, these tall ships are magnificent. See them if you can.