Beach Jewels And Ocean Gems: Sea Glass Fest Returns To Whaling Museum

The Whaling Museum and Education Center is hosting the second annual Sea Glass Festival on Sunday, July 23 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. rain or shine. Now a 7-hour event, attendees will have more time to peruse new vendors and exhibitors and opt to partake in a special in-depth sea glass and wire wrapping jewelry workshop.

New this year is artist Roseanne Wellmaker of Ro’s Glass World, who will host hourly flameworking demonstrations on the lawn of the museum’s Wright House, expanding the event to include more of the museum’s grounds.

The festival is the only event of its kind in New York State celebrating the art and history of sea glass through demonstrations, craft workshops, artist presentations, etc. This event engages artists, performers, and community partners to build on the public’s interest in the art of sea glass as a platform to expand public knowledge about Suffolk County’s maritime heritage, and the cultural significance of the ocean that surrounds Long Island.

“To our surprise, the Sea Glass Festival quickly became our museum’s highest-attended event. We were delighted to see record-breaking attendance at our Sea Glass Festival in 2022. With expanded hours this year, we look forward to continuing to bring communities together to celebrate our ocean’s gems and the unique history behind them. The beauty and stories of sea glass continues to charm Long Islanders young and old, and we look forward to bringing the community together again this summer to explore this treasured asset of Long Island’s beaches,” said Nomi Dayan, executive director of The Whaling Museum.

Antique glass bottle experts, the Long Island Bottle Association (LIABA), will be on-site throughout the event offering free antique bottle appraisals for visitors who bring their own bottles for valuation. LIABA will have a full display of antique bottles for visitors to peruse and learn about.

New topics for the “Sea Glass Talks” will be shared by returning special guest presenters George Wm. Fisher and Mary McCarthy. George Wm. Fisher, author and local expert on antique bottles, will present

“Origins of Sea Glass: Beverage Bottles and Medicine Bottles” with an extension to last year’s topic to include milk bottles and condiment bottles.

Mary McCarthy, beachcombing educator and former vice president of the International Beachcombing Association and executive director of The Beachcombing Center, will present “Identifying Sea Glass by Color” and will be available outside her presentation schedule to identify visitors’ personal sea glass finds. She will also judge the Sea Glass of the Year contest, in which visitors are encouraged to enter their own pieces. Contest participants are eligible to win prizes in three separate categories: Best in Show, Most Unusual, and Best Historical Piece. “I’m thrilled to return to the 2nd Annual Sea Glass Festival at The Whaling Museum this year. The region is rich in history for coastal treasures, as evidenced by the finds brought in for identification and competition last year,” McCarthy said.

“This has become a staple event for us because there’s so much interest in it, and because we’re the only organization on Long Island doing an event focused on the history and artistry of glass at the same time,” said Gina Van Bell, assistant director of the museum.

Event attendees can register in advance to participate in the sea glass and wire wrapping workshop, a more in-depth jewelry class offered on the hour. Participants aged 12 and older will learn the essentials of securing sea glass and designing their own one-of-a-kind necklace. All materials are included. Workshop space is limited, and advance registration is strongly encouraged. Kids can partake in glassthemed crafts and a glass-themed scavenger hunt held inside the museum’s galleries as well as enjoy the play area in the If I Were a Whaler” exhibit space.

The Whaling Museum & Education Center is selling advance tickets to the event at cshwhalingmuseum.org/seaglass. Tickets bought before the event are $15 per person, and free for children 2 and under. Museum members pay a discounted rate of $10 per person. Advance tickets for the jewelry workshop are $25, and entry cards for the Sea Glass of the Year contest are $5. Tickets bought at the door cost an additional $5 each as well as the jewelry workshop which will be $30 at the door. All other event activities, except food truck purchases are included in admission. The museum is located at 301 Main Street, Cold Spring Harbor, NY. For more information, contact (631)367-3418.

—submitted by the Whaling Museum with additional reporting by Amanda Olsen