Irish Emigrant Tall Ship to Visit Halifax

WATERFRONT DEVELOPMENT CORP.--Irish Emigrant Tall Ship to Visit Halifax

The Jeanie Johnston, a replica of a 19th-century Irish emigrant tall ship, arrives at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 29 for a four- day visit in Halifax.

While in port, the Jeanie Johnston will be docked at Queen's Wharf North on the Halifax waterfront. The ship will be open for public tours Saturday, Aug. 30 through Monday, Sept. 1 between 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The original Jeanie Johnston was built in Quebec by noted Scottish-born shipbuilder John Munn, in 1847. The current replica is an exact copy of the original square-sterned, three-masted barque. It was built at Blennerville, County Kerry, Ireland.

During port visits, the ship transforms into a museum-quality experience, featuring artifacts and the lives of the crew as it was during voyages in the 19th century. The vessel was launched in Ireland in 2002 and for the past six months has been involved in a tour of North American ports.

The ship arrives in Halifax from St. Andrews, N.B. It departs on Tuesday, Sept. 2 for Miramichi, N.B. then travels on to Montreal and Quebec City before heading back to Atlantic Canada for a visit to St. John's, NL.

The Charitable Irish Society sees the visit of the Jeanie Johnston as an opportunity to highlight Halifax's rich Irish culture and heritage. The society will be helping the captain and crew with ticket and merchandise sales and with staffing of the gangways.

Admission fees for tours are $8 for adults, $5 for children over 10 years and free for children 10 years and under. The family rate is $20.

The visit of the Jeanie Johnston was organized by Waterfront Development Corporation Limited, a provincial Crown corporation, as part of its Visiting Ships Program.

For more information on the visit, contact the corporation at 902-422-0341 or by e-mail at [email protected] .

Information on the Jeanie Johnston is available on the Web site at www.jeaniejohnston.com .