USS Marinette docks at Baltimore Peninsula for Sail250 celebrations

The USS Marinette was docked at Baltimore Peninsula as Sail250 Maryland and Airshow Baltimore brought a Freedom-class littoral combat ship into the city’s waterfront celebration. Visitors could board the ship for free public tours daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with no tickets required, and the Baltimore Peninsula festival map marked a dedicated Marinette viewing area.

The ship stood out because it was not a static display. The U.S. Navy describes USS Marinette LCS-25 as a Freedom-class littoral combat ship, and CBS Baltimore called it one of the most functional ships in the Navy fleet. Navy records list it as the 25th littoral combat ship overall and the 13th Freedom-variant hull. It was authorized on March 31, 2016, built by Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wisconsin, and commissioned on September 16, 2023, in Menominee, Michigan, just across the river from its namesake city of Marinette.

For Baltimore, the ship’s stop added a working Navy presence to an event already built around tall ships, aircraft and waterfront crowds. Sail250 organizers described the program as a global gathering of international tall ships, military ships and aircraft commemorating America’s 250th anniversary, and Baltimore was one of five national ports chosen for the series, alongside New Orleans, Norfolk, New York and Boston. Baltimore City said the broader celebration ran June 24 through July 1, 2026, while Sail250 Maryland and Airshow Baltimore was scheduled for June 24-30.

The stop also gave residents a close look at a ship that usually lives far from Baltimore Harbor. Navy ship records list Naval Station Mayport, Florida, as Marinette’s homeport, which made its appearance at the peninsula a rare public encounter with a modern combat vessel tied to an active fleet. A sailor aboard framed the visit as an honor tied to the nation’s 250th anniversary, reinforcing the ship’s role in the commemoration as much as in the Navy’s operations.

The waterfront draw carried a clear economic stake. Organizers and local media expected at least 200,000 visitors, and the Baltimore Sun estimated more than $75 million in economic impact for Maryland. That comparison also reflected how the city has used major waterfront events before: Maryland Fleet Week and Flyover Baltimore in 2024 drew tens of thousands of visitors and generated $63 million in revenue. For Baltimore Peninsula, the Marinette became both an attraction and a signal of how the harbor is being used to pull tourism, public history and maritime visibility into the same frame.