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The United States Coast Guard was born in 1790 by the urging of the Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. Over its 236 years of service the Coast Guard has proved invaluable in enforcing laws, saving lives, and protecting the coastal waterways of the United States. Connecticut itself is home to the USCG Academy and New Haven is the port of command for Sector Long Island Sound - an important and strategic body of water for the United States. Join us and build a Coast Guard Cutter - a small fast boat used for rescue, intercept, patrolling, and in the unique conditions of CT: breaking ice on the Connecticut River - with electric motor power. Build, wire, and connect your cutter to power through the water in our outside water tables in one day of history and fun.

Welcome back to school season with a hands-on day exploring basic tools and woodworking! Campers will focus on tool safety, how to use different tools confidently, and, just as importantly, which tool to reach for and why.

Throughout the day, campers will sand, hammer, saw, drill, use screwdrivers, and more. They’ll explore different types of wood and their characteristics, learning what to look for and how the material can help determine the right tool for the job. We’ll also examine tree cross-sections and discover what their rings can tell us about a tree’s life and the wood we use for building.

Campers will put their new skills to work by building something of their own by hand such as a hinged box, a small stool, or another project that can be completed in a day.

This will be a great way to kick off the school year and set the tone for a year of making, building, and learning at the Museum.
 

Solar power has benefited humans through time and today campers will bring solar power into focus in a new light, powering up a car! We will be constructing cars with solar powered motors that campers will wire and connect. Test your car's power and alter components to get the best results. If the weather allows, race outside and see how much solar power you need to get from point A to point B. 

Fantasy Game Night

Fantasy Game Night

Fantasy Game Night

Fantasy Game Night

From Chinese kites flown thousands of years ago to the unmanned helicopter Ingenuity stationed on Mars. Humanity has far surpassed what was once thought to be impossible. Spend the week building a series of flying projects and play with the physics that make them possible. Spin discs across a room, test different designs to find the BEST paper airplane, and end the week by launching model rockets high into the sky. These are just a few ways we will explore the world above ground-level. Learn what makes flight possible, then use that knowledge to make it happen.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines an Automaton as 1. a mechanism that is relatively self-operating and 2. a machine or control mechanism designed to follow automatically a predetermined sequence of operations or respond to encoded instructions.
This may bring to mind the concept of a robot with electronics and coding determining its function. But a code doesn’t have to be electronic. Through careful planning and placement, certain mechanics can be used to replicate a motion repeatedly. Indeed, clockwork and mechanical automatons have existed since Ancient Greece. Foreign dignitaries visiting the Byzantine Emperor’s court in the 10th century were greeted by a golden tree of singing birds and two golden lions were flanking the throne with roaring mouths and swishing tails. A series of projects will be explored from the precise and mechanical movements of a spinning shaft to the silly and unconventional like Marvin Minsky’s “useless machine”.

Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing–absolutely nothing–half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.
- Water Rat, Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Gramme 1908

With the development of the gasoline engine in the early 1900s it became an inevitable pairing to put one on a boat. The first race incorporating this new technology took place in 1904 on the Hudson River, though speeds were limited. By 1931 the 100 mph mark was broken by builder and designer Gar Wood. Fast, fun, and remote controlled, our boat will NOT hit 100 mph.
Work every day on a remote controlled model speedboat to take home.
Work on a team to create a unique cardboard (you read that right) boat for friendly competition in our annual Mill River regatta on Friday afternoon.