East End Seaport Museum’s Summer Social Fridays talks kick off with oysters and beer

Greenport’s East End Seaport Museum is kicking off the first of two talks as part of its Summer Social Fridays program with a night of oysters and beer.

The Friday, July 24, offering commences with a sailor’s night at the museum, dubbed Brine and Brew, from 5 to 7 p.m. Widow’s Hole Oysters will provide the eats, beer will be available from Greenport Harbor Brewing and wine from Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue. The event is free for members, with a $20 suggested donation for non-members.

Attendees will also be able to see what the museum has been working on behind the scenes: digitizing its collection of historical photographs. Among the first to come off the scanner are a set from 1940 showing the crew of the Cedar Island Oyster Company, hauling, culling and packing oysters in Greenport Harbor.

On Friday, Aug. 7, the event for the 250 Tall Ship Tour Talk shifts to the North Fork Arts Center, staeting at 7 p.m. The conversation will center around the captain of the USCG Barque Eagle, whose vessel docked in Greenport. There will also be sea shanties sung by local group Ethel’s Mermen.

At its height, Greenport was one of the largest oystering centers on the East Coast. Four trainloads of oysters a day left the village bound for Manhattan, and fourteen canneries operated alongside the shipyards, sailmakers, barrel makers, and shuckers whose work supported them.