In May 2025 the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMCThe Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is the state agency that stewards the U.S. Brig Niagara and Erie Maritime Museum. The PHMC is responsible for the collect...) signed a contract with The Shipyard at Boothbay Harbor (aka Bristol Marine) for the U.S. Brig Niagara’s refit work that had been postponed since its announcement in 2014. While PHMC has been sporadically posting updates about Niagara’s shipyard progress that focus on the methods used are of an educational nature, there has been interest in a more detailed accounting of the scope of work and the cost of the work. Here is the scope of work, as outlined in the contract that PHMC signed with The Shipyard at Boothbay Harbor:
Contracted Scope of Work (or you can read the whole contract here)
We also have requested the weekly shipyard reports through Right-to-KnowA Right to Know (RTK) request is a request for information from a state or local government body in Pennsylvania. You are allowed to request any kind of information, and aside from... Requests and are sharing these publicly for several reasons. The primary reasons are for transparency and accountability on the part of PHMC for the folks who are footing the bill – PA taxpayers. Additionally, some people, especially those who have contributed to Niagara’s care over the years, may appreciate knowing the details of the work that is being done. To illustrate that we are not just looking for problems with PHMC’s management of Niagara, we wanted to show the care and attention that the shipyard is taking as they work on Niagara, as evidenced in the detailed reports. Finally, you may be interested in the cost of the repairs and may want to keep an eye on what is being spent, compared to what was proposed in the contract.
Shipyard Reports
Now that PHMC is planning for the refit work to be completed in April 2026, it would be good to find out what contracted work was actually done and what the final cost was to taxpayers. It appears that Protect Brig Niagara is the only source making that information available to the public.
I have not read through all of these, just skimmed a bit. It all looks fairly routine at a glance. I must say that April 2026 seems early, but considering the desire to finish within a year that dominated to contract negotiations, it makes sense. The pictures coming out of the shipyard show some solid work being done with innovative and clever technique being used by the staff in Boothbay. The ship itself looks to be in great shape where it really counts, in the framing. The fatal mistake most owners make with elderly ships is to keep replanking failing frames, which leads to wasted money and effort. NIAGARA’s frames appear to be wonderfully sound.
I don’t know what the last survey before the shipyard revealed for problems or what Boothbay knows about that is not being addressed due to the short contract, but I will say that it looks like Erie will be getting back a like new ship with a new lease on life. The real challenge will be to rebuild or mimic the organization that cared for her all these years and kept her at the head of the class in the sail training world.