Explorer Diving’s (in Kingston) Chris Haslip (on his scooter) wanted to visit the barge cars and dock underwater near the old Maritime Museum in Kingston recently. The Maritime Museum was established in 1892 at the Kingston Dry Dock, which is now a national historic site in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. It should not be confused with the Kingston Royal Naval Dockyard, which was a British naval base and the home of the Provincial Marine at the time.
The museum’s future was tainted by the federal government’s decision in 2016 to sell the property and require the museum to vacate in order for residential redevelopment to proceed. The museum galleries were closed, and the collections were stored before the museum could find a new location where it could reopen to the public. The office of the marine museum has been relocated to 53 Yonge Street.
Read The Scuba News Initial Article on the Maritime Museum of Kingston
After the re-developer and the city couldn’t settle on a residential high-rise, the museum received a donation from an undisclosed source in 2019 and repurchased the site. The museum intends to reopen after renovations and refurbishment. The museum is currently closed to the public but hopes to re-open this summer. (2021)
Dive Report
Chris reported to us that the water temperature was 45 degrees F, and spent 45 minutes scootering around. Unfortunately, he did not charge the battery in his camera, so only a few pictures were taken. The dive was fun, and the visibility wasn’t too poor. The barge rests in 40 feet of water and is lined.
Chris Haslip of Explorer Diving
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