Flagship Niagara League / Lettie G. Howard

“Fair winds… and following
seas” is a nautical phrase of goodwill that sailors use to wish
someone well with fair winds to fill their sails, and a following sea, or
having the movement of the water is in their favor, to push them along on their
journey. 

The Flagship Niagara League
invites you on this journey. For centuries the only way people, commerce, or
ideas moved anywhere in the world was on ships just like Lettie G. Howard.  At 132 years old and designated as a National Register of Historic places, she is the iconic image of Tall Ships and the age of sail in Erie for the
summer of 2025 and beyond.  You can join
us on this journey, sail, and share that experience with others. We host Tall Ships Erie every 3 years and bring an international fleet to Erie this summer - Tall Ships Erie 2025 will be held August 21 - 24th.  This event and your support during Erie Gives provide funds for sail training education, ship maintenance projects, and community engagement with our programs. 

Erie is a Maritime City and
over 40 years ago, local residents incorporated the nonprofit Flagship Niagara
League to preserve our maritime heritage and pass it along to future
generations with ships like Niagara, and now Lettie as she carries
visitors on day sails in Presque Isle Bay, as a sail training vessel, and as an
ambassador of Erie visiting other ports. She has become the foreground of
Erie’s sunsets, giving thousands of people that unique Erie Bayfront
experience.  We hope that you feel proud
of our work enhancing our community and Erie’s waterfront.

To continue that journey, we need your help to fund Lettie, her shipyard maintenance, and
the seasons ahead so that she will continue to serve our community. We are
calling on you to support the organization that has brought so much to Erie and
the region.

Life at sea never stands still
and it brings new and unexpected opportunities and challenges with every
sunrise aboard a majestic Tall Ship like Lettie. We
feel a great responsibility to continue the important work of educational and sail
training programs, as well as provide Northwest Pennsylvania with the Tall
Ships festival you deserve.

• 
  ·        
  We provide opportunities for people to enjoy
  access to their waterfront through an experience on a tall ship.
  
  
  
  
  


• 
  ·        
  Our in-house and highly skilled professional
  crew works with volunteers to perform essential maintenance here at home.
  
  
  
  
  


• 
  ·        
  For decades the Flagship Niagara League has collaborated
  with our travel and tourism neighbors, community partners, and sailing organizations
  to provide access, enjoyment, and experiences on our waters, including the Tall Ships Erie Festival held every three years on Erie's bayfront. 
  
  
  
  
  


• 
  ·        
  Our award-winning sail training programs transferred
  to Lettie in 2024 beginning with Mercyhurst University and the College
  History Program and continued with the Girl Scouts Destinations Program. This Spring Lettie started with the Erie Passport program for 5th-grade students.  In 2025 we have added open enrollment programs and high school programs while representing Erie at festivals in the Great Lakes.
  

.

 And so this great adventure continues,
but we need your help to make these exciting programs happen. Our passion for
sail training and sharing the beauty of Lake Erie and Presque Isle is
unwavering. Help us keep Lettie, our operations, and continue to bring you the finest Tall Ships festival in the country to Erie every 3 years.

We urgently need your
financial support to put the wind in our sails as we move forward through the
2025 sail training season and continue the traditions for the next 40 years of
the Flagship Niagara League’s service to our community.

Who We Are

The Flagship Niagara League is a local volunteer organization that supports the Erie Maritime Museum and the Flagship Niagara