The ''Woody Guthrie'' is a 47'

gaff Gaff may refer to: Ankle-worn devices * Spurs in variations of cockfighting * Climbing spikes used to ascend wood poles, such as utility poles Arts and entertainment * A character in the ''Blade Runner'' film franchise * Penny gaff, a 19th- ...

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...

which supports the mission of the larger Sloop ''Clearwater'' educating people about the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...

and its environment. The vessel was ordered by

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notabl ...

in 1978 for the Beacon Sloop Club, which has supplied volunteers to maintain and operate it ever since. The boat is named after the prominent progressive folk singer

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, American socialism and anti-fascism. He ...

, a friend of Seeger's and author of the famed tune, "

This Land is Your Land "This Land Is Your Land" is one of the United States' most famous folk songs. Its lyrics were written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie in 1940 in critical response to Irving Berlin's "God Bless America", with melody based on a Carter Fam ...

". Since the ''Guthrie'' was built, volunteers have given sailing experience to thousands of members and guests of the Beacon Sloop club for free. Guests are educated by the volunteers about the history of the river and the boat and asked to help the mission of the boat in any way they can. In August 2017, the Woody was relaunched after 6 years of fundraising, 2 years of work, $400k spent, and 5,000 volunteer hours. She was restored at the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Kingston, New York.

References

The Beacon Sloop Club website page on the ''Woody Guthrie''

External links

ClearwaterBeacon Sloop Club websiteSloop Woody Guthrie Facebook page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woody Guthrie, Sloop Environmental organizations based in New York (state) Hudson River Individual sailing vessels Replica ships Beacon, New York 1978 ships Cultural depictions of Woody Guthrie