Maine's First Ship

Maine's First Ship Maine’s First Ship uses our reconstruction of the 1607 pinnace Virginia for education and community
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Maine’s First Ship strives to use our reconstruction of the 1607 pinnace Virginia to immerse the public in an exploration of the region’s early history, craftsmanship, and relationships, and their impact on our community and environment today. The original Virginia was built at the Popham Colony, near the mouth of the Kennebec River, that was founded in 1607 and abandoned in 1608. The colony of ab

out 100 men and boys was founded to exploit the wood, animal, and mineral wealth of the area and to find the northwest passage. Virginia was built to use in this exploration but was then used to return some of the colonists to England. She later returned to America to resupply Jamestown, The Popham Colony’s southern sister colony. The reconstruction is being built in and around the Bath Freight Shed in Bath Maine. The Bath area, twelve miles upriver of the Popham Colony became a major shipbuilding site and this reconstruction honors the 400 years of quality shipbuilding in the area. The Bath Freight Shed is that last warehouse in the area which in the 1850s was the fifth largest port in the United States. MFS is dedicated to maintaining this building and making it available as a community center.

Virginia is off on her first public sail of 2026!!We sail multiple times June-September. Check out mfship.org/sail to bo...
06/05/2026

Virginia is off on her first public sail of 2026!!
We sail multiple times June-September. Check out mfship.org/sail to book your time onboard the Flagship of the Sagadahoc!

Set a course for the Bath Freight Shed and tonight's talk, "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations" by Capta...
06/03/2026

Set a course for the Bath Freight Shed and tonight's talk, "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations" by Captain Whit Perry.
7pm, 27 Commercial Street, along the mighty Kennebec River is historic downtown Bath
Learn more about our Summer Lecture Series at mfship.org/events

All the way from Plimoth Patuxet Museums we welcome Director of Maritime Preservation and Operations, and Captain of the...
06/03/2026

All the way from Plimoth Patuxet Museums we welcome Director of Maritime Preservation and Operations, and Captain of the Mayflower II, Whit Perry, to launch our Summer Lecture Series with "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations." Learn more about tonight's talk and upcoming speakers and topics on the Events page of our website, linked in bio, and be sure to join us at the Bath Freight Shed, 27 Commercial Street in historic downtown Bath.

Come hear the Captain of the Mayflower II, Whit Perry, speak on "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations" as ...
06/03/2026

Come hear the Captain of the Mayflower II, Whit Perry, speak on "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations" as the first offering of our Summer Lecture Series: tomorrow, Wednesday, June 3, 7pm, at the Bath Freight Shed, 27 Commercial Street, Bath, Maine. Learn more at mfship.org/events.

Last Friday evening MFS Volunteers came together for a potluck to kick off the season. In addition to sharing some tasty...
06/02/2026

Last Friday evening MFS Volunteers came together for a potluck to kick off the season. In addition to sharing some tasty dishes, getting to know new Volunteer Coordinator Connie, and hearing remarks on the upcoming season from interim Executive Director Matt, those gathered remembered fellow volunteer Bob Ireland who recently passed. Thank you to those who were able to attend and provided a delicious spread! If you would like to get involved we are in need of folks to join us as sailing crew, museum docents, and event support. Reach out to Connie at [email protected].

Welcome to June! We saw out the busy month of May with a training sail on Sunday. Now we look toward summer with our Sum...
06/01/2026

Welcome to June! We saw out the busy month of May with a training sail on Sunday. Now we look toward summer with our Summer Lecture Series starting this Wednesday at 7pm when we host Captain Whit Perry of the Mayflower II for a look at "The History of Mayflower II and Recent Renovations." Come join us at the Bath Freight Shed, 27 Commercial Street, in historic downtown Bath, along the Kennebec River. Our public sails begin on Friday, June 5 with one ticket remaining as we post this. Learn more about the summer ahead at mfship.org

Huzzah! Weeks of safety training + a successful visit with the U.S. Coast Guard yesterday = a brand new Certificate of I...
05/29/2026

Huzzah! Weeks of safety training + a successful visit with the U.S. Coast Guard yesterday = a brand new Certificate of Inspection for Virginia as a dockside attraction! This means we can have more visitors on deck when at our home dock or visiting other ports. Reaching this long-anticipated milestone is a great way to start the summer. Hope your summer includes a visit to Maine's First Ship.
(We are still limited to 6 guests when sailing.)

On Saturday, Vivian--whose capable hands you see here--and her Clothing Crewe met in the Jane Stevens Sagadahoc Heritage...
05/26/2026

On Saturday, Vivian--whose capable hands you see here--and her Clothing Crewe met in the Jane Stevens Sagadahoc Heritage Center to add labels into items of clothing they have crafted for our volunteer sailors to wear for interpretation and education aboard the ship. This is the final step for the shirts, slops, and cassocks, all handstitched with care by this dedicated group.

Special Memorial Day Weekend hours: 10am-3pm Saturday, May 23; 10am-1pm Sunday, May 24; 10am-3pm Monday, Memorial Day, ...
05/23/2026

Special Memorial Day Weekend hours: 10am-3pm Saturday, May 23; 10am-1pm Sunday, May 24; 10am-3pm Monday, Memorial Day, May 25.
27 Commercial Street in beautiful and historic downtown Bath, alongside the Kennebec River
Learn more at mfship.org.

Here's more from this afternoon's training session. Two hours later than that "moody" sky...
05/20/2026

Here's more from this afternoon's training session. Two hours later than that "moody" sky...

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Maine's First Ship, 27 Commercial Street
Bath, ME
04530

Opening Hours

Wednesday 10am - 3pm
Saturday 10am - 3pm

Telephone

+12074434242

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