John J. Harvey
historic fireboat

ArtSavant will inform, provoke, & amuse.

We will surprise you.

a view of what was, as seen from the Hudson

Fireboat John J. Harvey and Fireboat McKean

On the subject of fireboats, all we can say is "wow." That's not really true; we have lots to say about John J. Harvey. It was big. It was wet. It was giddy fun. We went to view a sculpture by Voss Finn, installed on the pier in Riverside Park South, but our favorite part was when we toured the Statue of Liberty and the boat's loudspeakers boomed with Kate Smith singing "God Bless America" while doing a sustained water display. No kidding, it made us clap our hands with unabashed delight.

night water display

In 2001, John J. Harvey was able to dock in the Exclusion Zone during the July 4 fireworks display, locating a spot at the mouth of Newtowne Creek, just opposite the barges from which the explosives were launched, where no vessels other than police boats and -- guess what -- fireboats can tie up. (The X Zone spanned the area from Roosevelt Island to the Williamsburg Bridge, with no boats allowed in Newtowne Creek west of the Pulaski Bascule Bridge.)