This event has been canceled for the day.
TOWN, VILLAGE, AND COAST GUARD TO HOLD SERVICES TO MARK THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE GWENDOLINE STEERS TRAGEDY THIS SUNDAY.
On Sunday, October 28th, The Town of Huntington, Village of Northport, and the US Coast Guard will be participating in a wreath laying ceremony and plaque dedication to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Gwendoline Steers’ tragedy. The Gwendoline Steers was a tugboat home-based out of Northport that sank in Huntington Bay during a winter ice storm on December 30th, 1962 with all hands. Relatives of the 9 victims will be in attendance at both events.
The wreath laying ceremony will begin from the US Coast Guard Station at Eaton’s Neck where a number of vessels will disembark the station at 9:45am and proceed a mile west to the wreck site arriving around 10:15am. This ceremony is by invitation only. The ceremony will take place from 10:15am to 10:45am from the fantail of the tugboat “G.P. Thornton” over the wreck site. Area boaters are invited to attend and meet at the wreck site (Lat 40/57/15.31, Long 73/26/02.78) or (GPS Coordinates: 073.4293 & 40.9547) at 10:15am. Following the ceremony, the group will disembark at the Coast Guard station at 11am, and proceed to Hobart Beach in Eaton’s Neck.
The plaque dedication at Hobart Beach will begin at Noon, and the public is welcome to attend. The Northport Historical Society will have artifacts recovered from the wreck on display, and local Northport artist Jo-Ann Coretti will unveil her latest painting “Final Moments” depicting the tug in the ice storm. Another local artist, Loary Gunn, will have two paintings on display, and several retired Police and Fire Department personnel who were part of the search and recovery operation will be on hand to discuss their recollections.
