The replica famine ship Jeanie Johnston arrived safely and on time yesterday at West Palm Beach, Florida, on her inaugural visit to North America.
Under the command of Capt Tom McCarthy, the Jeanie Johnston was escorted by a flotilla of local vessels to her berth at the Palm Beach Maritime Museum, Peanut Island. There she will be open to the public until her departure on a series of visits to ports along the east coast over the next few months.
The ship originally set sail from Fenit, Co Kerry, on February 16th. In making the journey to North America, the crew of the Jeanie Johnston has recreated the trip countless Irish emigrants braved to reach a new homeland during the great famine that swept through Ireland in the mid-19th century.
The ship is a replica of the original Jeanie Johnston, a so-called famine ship that carried more than 2,500 Irish emigrants to the US and Canada from 1848 to 1855. In all her voyages she never lost a single passenger.
Many Irish-Americans are descended from survivors of the famine ships.
While at Palm Beach Maritime Museum, visitors will be able to tour the Jeanie Johnston to get a sense of what it was like to sail on such a famine ship.
A wide variety of other activities will take place at Peanut Island to celebrate the ship's visit.
One of every nine people who live in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast in Florida claim Irish ancestry.
Peanut Island is the first North American port of call on a 12-city tour up the east coast this summer for the 148-foot-long Irish tallship.
The replica vessel carries a crew of 11 and 29 trainees, including on this occasion a mix of 15 young adults, both Catholic and Protestant, from Ireland and Northern Ireland.
"It's also a ship of understanding and peace," said Capt McCarthy, as manning the vessel helps erase religious and political lines, he said.
Although the original Jeanie Johnston sailed due west across the Atlantic, the replica has taken the route of Christopher Columbus' first voyage, stopping in the Canary Islands along the way.
The ship sailed south first, then west from the Canaries to take advantage of the westerly trade winds.
Last Thursday the Jeanie Johnston was off San Salvador in the Bahamas, which is reputed to have been Columbus' first stop in the 'New World'.
Capt McCarthy said the voyage was "magnificent" and that they've been under sail for 80 per cent of the trip.