Antique Boat Show, Auction continues through Sunday in Clayton

Zachary Canaperi, Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.
·2 min read

Aug. 5—CLAYTON — The Antique Boat Show and Auction, hosted by the Antique Boat Museum, kicked off on Friday, bringing in boat enthusiasts from around the country.

The riverside event will continue through Sunday, with a variety of activities in store for the coming days. The La Duchesse, a 106-foot-long houseboat built in 1903, is open for walk through tours on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. On Saturday, Ride the River will depart every 30 minutes, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Antique Boat Auction begins on Saturday, at 1 p.m. The show will conclude on Sunday, after the Finale Parade, which begins at noon, along the Clayton waterfront.

Dave Griffin, of Frederick Maryland, was one of the show's early visitors on Friday. Griffin arrived at Clayton on Wednesday, after making the trip up on his 1948 Indian motorcycle, taking back roads the whole way. "It was a beautiful ride up here — breathtaking views. And of course, when you get here, its more breathtaking views."

Griffin, a boat owner himself, has a 1962 Century Resorter back at home in Maryland.

He was enjoying looking at all the antique boats, floating in the blue-green waters at the boat museum's docks.

"My gosh its beautiful. The boats are beautiful," Griffin said.

While Griffin was browsing the docks, others at the show were busy making artwork. Under the cover of a large tent was the Paddle Painting station, where participants could learn from paddle painter John Miller III. Charity Senecal was one of the participants, and said it was going "Fabulous."

"John gives us a little assistance at first, and then sets us on our way," Senecal said. She and the others were working on a variety of colorful, landscape-style designs on miniature wooden paddles.

Outside the museum there were items for sale for those who weren't in the market for an antique boat. One of the vendors, Jim Unger, owner of Big Ship Salvage out of Milan, Ohio, was selling ship parts that his company buys from shipyards around the world. Many of the ship parts, such as lighting fixtures, become home décor.

"We sell to a lot of TV shows," said Unger. According to Unger, the previous owner of the company did quite a lot of business with Hollywood productions, and when Unger took over, he maintained some of those connections. He recently sold light fixtures that were in the latest "Top Gun" movie. He has also sold items for the TV show, "Deadliest Catch" and the "SpongeBob SquarePants Movie."