By Stefan D-W

The waterfront can be a destination, but it also can be a barrier that forces us to make a change. We stop there and look out across the water. To continue, we have to build a bridge (or tunnel, or tram), or swim, or board a boat. New York’s bridges are famous, with their permanence and prominence, but boats have been at the center of this city from the beginning. Boats are as iconic as any bridge, with the Kennedy class of the Staten Island Ferry nearly as much a symbol of the city as the Empire State Building or Brooklyn Bridge. Unlike bridges, however, boats are fleeting, rarely staying in one place for long and wearing away with hard use.

So, what can we learn about the city and its waterfront from its boats? How would we tell the story of the city through its boats? Over the coming months, Waterwire is going to find out. We’re inviting historians, planners, and people from across the maritime world and beyond to share their versions of “New York City in 10 Boats.” We’ll hear from vessel owners and historians like David Sharps of the Waterfront Museum and the Lehigh Valley Railroad Barge #79. We’ll talk to ecologists and planners like Rob Pirani of the NY-NJ Harbor & Estuary Program. From Colleen Bailey at Row New York, we’ll learn which 10 boats tell the story of New York as the coxswain sees it. We’re inviting perspectives on New York City history from industry, the arts, politics, and more. Let us know if you know someone who would like to tell the story of New York City in 10 boats! You can tweet Stefan at @DWStefan or email him at [email protected] to share your idea.

Our hope is to discover, with you, how these answers help us better understand our waterfronts and better see where our waterways fit into the lives of our communities, how they inform the ways we tell our stories, and how they may shape our city in the future through museums, historic vessels, research, and advocacy. Join us, here in the Waterwire, for the upcoming series New York City in 10 Boats, starting in February.

This series will be brought to you by guest writer Stefan D-W. Stefan is a native of St. George, Staten Island who fell in love with boats and New York Harbor while taking the Staten Island Ferry to school. He later worked on the water at the National Canal Museum in Pennsylvania and at The Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle. He is a passionate sailor and a frequent volunteer at The Waterfront Museum in Red Hook. He has worked on four continents as an educator, nonprofit administrator, actor, puppeteer, and artist. He currently lives in Brooklyn.