1991
The nonprofit is founded
Christeen Oyster Sloop Preservation Corp. is formed expressly to restore the 1883 oyster sloop CHRISTEEN.
Our history
From an eight-year restoration to a twelve-year new build, our story reflects what a committed community can accomplish together.
Milestones
More than three decades of wooden boatbuilding in Oyster Bay.
1999
CHRISTEEN returns to the water
After eight years of work by volunteers and professional shipwrights, the almost-new sloop launches at T. R. Roosevelt Park on October 2.
2002
A classroom on the water
CHRISTEEN joins The WaterFront Center, carrying schoolchildren and adults onto Oyster Bay Harbor to explore its ecology and history.
2010–11
A new keel and mast
Veteran and new volunteers replace the only original timber still remaining in the restored sloop—her keel—and make a new mast.
2011
IDA MAY construction begins
Building starts in Building J, ultimately engaging more than 70 volunteers and several professional shipwrights.
2023
IDA MAY launches
The 50-foot replica oyster dredge launches at the T. R. Roosevelt boat ramp on May 3.
2024
Public service begins
With engine, electrical work, final details, and permitting complete, IDA MAY begins carrying passengers for education, fishing, and private programs.
Today
A name for the full mission
The organization does business as the Wooden Boatshop of Oyster Bay, reflecting a future that includes many vessels, projects, and generations.
CHRISTEEN
The vessel that brought the organization together.
The Christeen Oyster Sloop Preservation Corp.—now doing business as the Wooden Boatshop of Oyster Bay—was founded in 1991 expressly to restore CHRISTEEN, built in 1883.
It took eight years for volunteers and professional shipwrights to complete the project. The restored sloop launched at T. R. Roosevelt Park on October 2, 1999, then joined The WaterFront Center in 2002 to become a classroom on the water.
In 2010–2011, many of the same volunteers, working alongside new devotees, replaced her keel—the only original timber still remaining in the sloop—and made a new mast.
Sailings aboard CHRISTEEN are managed by The WaterFront Center.
CHRISTEEN · Oyster Bay Harbor
IDA MAY
A working-waterfront story rebuilt for a new century.
After the CHRISTEEN restoration, the organization lay dormant for a decade while many volunteers continued helping with her maintenance and crewing. With initial development funding, the group eventually took on a new challenge.
The original wooden IDA MAY was built in 1925 for the Frank M. Flower Company and was among the first engine-powered oyster dredges to work Oyster Bay. After 75 years of service, she was no longer operational and was donated to The WaterFront Center in 2004.
Enthusiasm grew for building a replica that could become a larger classroom on the water. Construction began in Building J in 2011, engaging more than 70 volunteers. Professional shipwrights were led initially by David Short and then by Josh Herman.
After years of progress—sometimes interrupted by funding shortages—the new IDA MAY launched on May 3, 2023. She became ready for passengers in 2024.
Sailings aboard IDA MAY are managed by The WaterFront Center.
IDA MAY · Oyster Bay Harbor
The next chapter
Our history is still being built.
The name Wooden Boatshop of Oyster Bay honors everything that began with CHRISTEEN while making room for new restorations, new builds, youth programs, and projects we have not yet imagined.