Wilson and WoodenBoat to receive Seaport award

Mystic Seaport has named Jon Wilson and WoodenBoat as the recipient of the America and the Sea Award for 2012.

Wilson, the founder of WoodenBoat, will accept the award Saturday, Oct. 27, at a gala held in his honor at Mystic Seaport. This black-tie affair is the premier fundraising event for the museum and is by invitation only.

The America and the Sea Award recognizes an individual or organization whose contributions to the history, arts, business or sciences of the sea best exemplify the American character. Past recipients include former Secretary of the Navy John Lehman; oceanographer and explorer Sylvia Earle; historian David McCullough; yacht designer Olin Stephens; president and CEO of Crowley Maritime Corporation, Thomas Crowley; and maritime collector and yachtsman William Koch.