Lois McClure comes to Brockport

Lois McClure comes to Brockport

Brockport prepares to host historic schooner replica

An unusual guest is expected in Brockport. The Lois McClure, an 88 foot long wooden schooner, is slated to arrive at the Welcome Center in Harvester Park on the evening of August 3, where it will dock until the morning of August 6.

Mayor Mort Wexler will lead a delegation of elected officials greeting the historic vessel and its crew upon their arrival to Brockport. "We're certainly used to boats on the canal, but you don't see one like this too often," said Wexler. "We are delighted that Brockport has been chosen as a port of call for the Lois McClure. And to have it here for an entire weekend is extra special."

Built in Burlington, Vermont by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, the Lois McClure is a full-scale replica of the commercial vessels that plied the Northern Canal connecting Lake Champlain to the Hudson River during the latter half of the 19th Century. Called sailing canal boats, they were versatile enough to reach ports along the lakeshore before arriving at the canal, where their centerboards were raised and masts lowered, allowing them to enter.

Brockport is one of only 28 stops along the Lois McClure's Grand Canal Journey, traveling throughout the summer across New York on the Erie Canal and New York State Canal System before returning in late September to its home port of Basin Harbor, Vermont.

Trustee Hanny Heyen, chair of the village committee coordinating the Lois McClure's visit, anticipates that the schooner will generate a lot of interest among sailing enthusiasts and land lovers alike. "I expect it to be a big draw for our village," said Heyen. "I'm sure that tours of the boat, which are free, are an attraction wherever it stops, but we wanted to do more. So from canalside concerts to historic exhibits at the Morgan Manning House, from bicycling and art walk tours to an old fashioned ice cream social, we're planning a variety of events to promote the Lois McClure's visit alongside other regular weekend activities, such as the Farmers Market. This is a great opportunity to showcase historic Brockport, and that's what we aim to do."