The City of Boston in cooperation with the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard, National Park Service, Boston Harborfest and OpSail have announced the official event schedule for the Bicentennial of the War of 1812 commemoration. Highlights include ship visitations and a Blue Angels aerial demonstration during USS Constitution‘s fourth of July turnaround.
From June 28th through July 5th, Boston Harbor will host visiting ships from the United Kingdom, Canada, Norway, Denmark, Brazil, Ecuador, Columbia, Germany and Indonesia. The primary locations for visiting ships will be the Charlestown Navy Yard and the South Boston Waterfront. In addition to USS Constitution and United States Coast Guard’s Eagle and Juniper, Charlestown will also be the location for the NOAA ship Thomas Jefferson, the Royal Norwegian Navy’s THOR HEYERDAHL as well as Denmark’s HDMS ESBERN SNARE. Canada’s HMCS KINGSTON and HMCS GOOSE BAY will also be berthed in Charlestown at Pier 1. South Boston’s North Jetty will host the United States Navy’s flagship, USS Wasp. Canadian ships, HMCS IROQOUIS and HMCS PRESERVER, The United Kingdom’s RFA ARGUS, the FGS HESSEN from Germany, and USS GRAVELY will all be berthed at Black Falcon Pier.
On June 30th, the OpSail fleet of tall ships will arrive and be berthed at South Boston’s Fish Pier. These ships will include CISNE BRANCO from Brazil, GUAYAS from Ecuador, GLORIA from Colombia and making its final port visit to Boston, the Indonesian tall ship DEWARUCI.
Visitation hours by location are as follows:
| DATE | CHARLESTOWN | FISH PIER | NORTH JETTY | BLACK FALCON | USCG BASE (N. End) |
| 6/30/12 | 10am to 6pm | Noon- 8pm | Noon- to 4pm | Noon to 6pm | CLOSED |
| 7/1/12 | 10am to 6pm | Noon- 8pm | Noon to 6pm | Noon to 6pm | CLOSED |
| 7/2/12 | 10am to 6pm | 4-8pm | Noon to 6pm | Noon to 6pm | CLOSED |
| 7/3/12 | 10am to 6pm | 4-8pm | Noon to 6pm | Noon to 6pm | CLOSED |
| 7/4/12 | 10am to 6pm | Noon- 8pm | CLOSED | Noon to 6pm | 10am to 4pm |
| 7/5/12 | 10am to 6pm | 4-8pm | Noon to 6pm | Noon to 6pm | CLOSED |
In addition to the visiting ships, the United States Navy’s Blue Angels will provide an aerial demonstration over Boston Harbor during the USS Constitution’s annual Fourth of July turnaround. This aerial demonstration is scheduled to start at noon on Wednesday, July 4th. It is scheduled to last for approximately 45 minutes. Throughout the week, the United States Navy’s “Leap Frogs” team will provide demonstrations at city parks.
For more information regarding the Boston events celebrating the Bicentennial of the War of 1812 please visit: www.navyweek.org. For all the activities surround the Fourth of July in Boston, please visit the Harborfest home page at: www.bostonharborfest.com. For more information on OpSail events in Boston and other cities, please visit: www.opsailboston.com.
