Something's fishy at Long Island Children's Museum

“Old salts” and new can once again make a splash at Long Island Children’s Museum (LICM) this month. Picking up on a program first offered last winter, visitors can explore the sights, sounds, and even the scents, of Long Island’s waterways as they interact with folk artists who share the traditional ways of life passed down for generations. “We offered a one-day program last year and visitors were delighted to hear directly from the baymen about their lives, work, and traditions,” said LICM spokeswoman Maureen Mangan. “This response prompted the museum to expand the programming.”
The museum’s homage to the region’s maritime industry, “Saltwater Stories,” is a three-part weekend series of immersive programming that explores local traditions that have shaped the historical, cultural and economic development of Long Island. The hands-on activities offer families something to tantalize all of their senses, as they taste clam stew, smell fish being smoked, see an oyster shucking competition, and use maritime tools. Children learn directly from maritime “tradition keepers” who share the skills and techniques that have been part of life for many Long Islanders for decades. 
In explaining how the program first evolved, LICM’s Program Director Aimee Terzulli had said, “I had noticed during the time I’ve been working with the kids here that a lot of them had never been fishing or to the beach. We wanted to show families how much the maritime culture has to offer Long Island.”
The different aspects of the region’s legacy are presented through creative tasks that kids can take part in, alongside those who have made a living in the maritime industry.

Each weekend looks at a different facet of maritime life. The first set of programs, held last Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 8-9, introduced families to “life on the bay” as they interacted with 10 area baymen, who shared techniques from decoy carving to fish smoking, to net repairs.
The response was outstanding, according to Mangan, who said that over 2,000 visitors participated in the opening weekend’s activities. “The program reminded parents that this is something they had done as children, but had not yet done with their own kids. And now, once the weather gets nicer, many families will introduce their own kids to fishing, clamming, and those sorts of activities. The parents were as excited to chat with the baymen as the kids.”
This weekend, Jan. 15-16, looks at the history of Long Island bay houses as families decorate a large-scale model and explore daily activities with current bay house
owners.
Mangan expects that many families will be returning for the second and third segments of the program. “What we saw,” she said,” is that a lot of parents want to come back and learn more. They met the people, now they want to learn about their lifestyle, which is what this weekend is all about, and during the final weekend they can look at the whaling industry and how it evolved.”
During that concluding weekend, families will examine the contributions the Shinnecock Indian Nation and African-Americans made to Long Island’s whaling industry as they explore cultural artifacts, including harpoons and woven eel baskets.    
“Saltwater Stories is a celebration of the sights, sounds and scents of Long Island,” said LICM Executive Director Suzanne LeBlanc. “Over the course of the three weekends, families will have the opportunity to learn from the ‘tradition keepers’ whose families shaped Long Island’s
development.”
The opening weekend, “A Day On The Bay,” introduced visitors to 10 local folk artists whose ties to the maritime industry can be traced back several generations. Baymen shared traditions that were passed down to them, as they taught the youngsters to use the tools of their trade to practice basic maritime skills. From the moment visitors entered the museum, they were immersed in waterfront life, as all their senses were tantalized. Families were taught how to smoke fish and make clam stew, use woodworking tools to work on a duck decoy, tried on clamming shoes, cast a fishing lure, repaired a dragger net, and baited a trap. The afternoon’s activities even included an oyster shucking
competi tion.  
Families also had the chance to view Glenn Gebhard’s award-winning documentary, “Baymen,” which will be shown again on Jan. 23, at 1 and 3 p.m. This stirring film looks at the history and contemporary hardships faced by South Shore baymen and the outlook for their future on Long Island.  

Exploring the Bay House
Families can prepare to set sail this weekend to explore Long Island’s historic bay houses. LICM visitors are invited to be part of the “crew” to decorate the façade of a large-scale house model. Kids will work alongside current bay house owners, archaeologist Frank Turano, Ph.D. and folklorist and LI Traditions Executive Director Nancy Solomon, as they learn about the various roles these buildings have played in the region’s history and how simple structures have emerged as a Long Island landmarks. Bay house owners George Rigby, Eddie Sheehan and Bill Powell will share stories of bay house life with visitors.
After viewing bay house models for inspiration, everyone can try their hand at designing their own architectural model of a marshland bay house and boardwalk.
Visitors are also invited to dock for a while at the LICM Theater for a musical adventure captained by Liz Joyce and a Couple of Puppets, Saturday and Sunday, at 1 and 3 p.m.
Joyce, an accomplished puppeteer, and her friends set sail with “Puppets of the High Seas” in this original show, on a voyage through time to the Island of No Footprints to meet some of the sea life from Long Island. Then travel along to discover the beauty and peril of life under the sea.

In The Whale’s Wake
The final weekend of Saltwater Stories, Jan. 22-23, will find visitors moored in history as they explore the contributions and influences of Native and African-Americans to the whaling industry. Activities will reflect the collaboration and contributions made by many cultural and racial groups to Long Island’s fishing industry. Families will explore ship routes used at a whaling table, examine maritime tools including harpoons, clam racks and woven eel baskets and investigate how a Native American clam bake is prepared. Shinnecock Nation member Josephine Smith and Judith Burgess, Ph.D, will be on hand to share cultural objects and stories highlighting Long Island’s rich seafaring past. John Bucza, a commercial bayman from Bay Shore, and Cory Weyant, a fish smoker from Freeport, will demonstrate eel trapping techniques with visitors.
“This is a great opportunity for families to understand the importance of the water to Long Island and those who devote their lives to the water,” said Terzulli. “Kids will get a sense of what everyday life is like for these people who have a passion for the water.”

Saltwater Stories at Long Island Children’s Museum
Weekends through Jan. 23. $10 for adults and children over 1 year old, $9 seniors. Additional fees for theater and special programs may apply.
Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 224-5800 or www.licm.org.