Brief History of the WaterFront Center From a shipyard to an
environmental education facility, in the oyster capital of NY
state. This area of the waterfront used to be the site of
Jakobson’s Shipyard, which during World War II employed over 600
workers, building minesweepers, tugboats and mini-submarines for
the U.S. Navy. The Jakobson Shipyard in Oyster Bay was once at
the center of Long Island's shipbuilding industry. At its height
of production, it was the largest builder of tugboats east of
the Mississippi. Eventually, changes in the industry left the
future of this valuable waterfront site in question. Concerned
citizens of Oyster Bay, who feared that the site could wind up
in the hands of developers, stepped in to ensure the site
remained a center for the community to explore its rich maritime
heritage and connection to the bay. So in 1996, the site was
purchased by the State of New York and the Town of Oyster Bay,
and in 2000 the WaterFront Center was born to transform the site
into a hands-on educati