The Sultana Projects will celebrate Uprigging Weekend on April 3 and 4, the first time the annual ritual has been made into a public celebration. The night of April 3 will be a fireside meet-the-crew reception aboard schooner Sultana. Sultana crew members will offer in-depth behind-the scenes tours of the replica 18th-century schooner, and light refreshments will be served. The reception coincides with Chestertown’s First Friday celebration. On April 4, Sultana will offer a children’s open house where children will have the opportunity to handle live fish caught in the Chester River, to raise and lower Sultana’s sails, to dress in 18th-century sailors’ garb, and more. Both scheduled events are to take place onboard the ship at the Cannon Street pier, and both are free.

Sultana Projects, which recently announced the appointment of Tanya Banks-Christensen as captain, also announced that Leona Dalton will return as education director and Beth Borchers as chief mate. Both were with the ship in 2008 so Sultana has a veteran nucleus in place for the 2009 sailing season.