Lilac Preservation Project

08/28/2026

LILAC received a love letter from a young fan last week. Simon and his mom presented it to Captain Mary with a lavender rose.

08/22/2026

We are humbled to accept the sword of Lilac's second Commanding Officer, CWO Charles L. Lewis. His great-grandson and great-great-grandson presented the engraved saber and its scabbard to us yesterday.

08/04/2026

Happy 236th birthday to the U.S. Coast Guard! Semper paratus

07/29/2026

LILAC will be closed Saturday, August 1 so crew can join in events at the Governors Island reunion commemorating 30 years since the Coast Guard base there closed. We look forward to welcoming Coasties aboard on Sunday. https://www.facebook.com/gibratsannualhomecoming/

We are a group of former GI Brats that gather on Governors Island each year on the closest weekend to Coast Guard Day - Aug 4. All are welcome!

07/27/2026

We did it! We put the Coast Guard emblem back on the stack on Friday. Thank you everyone. Semper paratus.

07/23/2026

Our City of Water Day line up for tomorrow, July 25th

07/10/2026

Taking the aids-to-navigation story to Staten Island. Join us on July 18th.

Have you ever been on the ferry and wondered about the red and green markers on the water? On July 18 at 1 PM, learn how such signals keep ships safe and what it takes to maintain Aids to Navigation (AtoN), like our very own Robbins Reef Lighthouse, with Mary Habstritt, the Museum Director of the Lilac Preservation Project. The retired Coast Guard Cutter LILAC is America's oldest lighthouse tender.

To visit the ship at Pier 25 in Manhattan, see lilacpreservationproject.org.

This talk is FREE with museum admission.

07/06/2026

Getting ready to reinstall the Coast Guard logo on Lilac's stack means a sailor has to do some painting. https://www.instagram.com/p/DaAlRGVEVjt/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

06/28/2026

Frank "W***y" Williams was Lilac's last chief engineer. He passed away a year ago. For his 90th birthday in 2021, his family drove him to NYC from Florida so visiting his old ship could be checked off of his bucket list. It was a magical visit. RIP, W***y.