About Schoonerfest:

Wiscasset Schoonerfest is organized by a dedicated crew of volunteers working to make next year’s festival the best ever!

If you want to build a ship, don’t divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

photo: the crew of the schooner When and If, Schoonerfest 2021

Wiscasset Schoonerfest is a cooperative venture of the Town of Wiscasset and Wiscasset Creative Alliance. It was launched to commemorate the resting place of two of the last of the four-masted schooners — Hesper and Luther Little — and to celebrate the return of the schooner When and If to her home harbor. It has been our mission to bring townspeople and visitors to Wiscasset’s waterfront to celebrate our distinguished shipbuilding heritage, dating back to the 1800s, with music, history, food, art, competitions, and schooner cruises.

Attendees in 2021 and 2022 enjoyed a range of musical performances (including blues, folk, classical, a steel band, a brass quintet, and sea chanteys), interaction with 1800s Maine colonial re-enactors, and four-foot schooners painted by local artists. Visitors caught the excitement of our harbor heritage with day sails on the schooners When and If and Tyrone, rowing races, and the Schoonerfest Triathlon that completed the festival. Wiscasset´s rich maritime history and preservation of our village — and our strong sense of community — are our greatest assets. We invite you to celebrate with us in 2024 as we look forward to another 300 years on the coast of Maine!

Schoonerfest is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and is a member of the Wiscasset Creative Alliance — a visionary umbrella of community organizations made up entirely of volunteers.

Schoonerfest Committee

  • Jamie Beaton
  • Jan Flowers
  • Larry Flowers
  • Duane Goud
  • Terry Heller
  • David Pope
  • Deb Small
  • Dan Watts

“Wiscasset was one of the earliest seaports and the most productive at one time, and we’re proud to bring it back and celebrate today.”

Cecilia Ludwig (Schoonerfest volunteer)

Where to find us

1 Water Street
Wiscasset, ME 04578