Duluth will still welcome eight Tall Ships this summer, but the Amistad - the replica of the slave mutiny ship - will not make the voyage.
Gene Shaw, public relations director of Visit Duluth, confirmed the ship will not set sail for Duluth this summer due to "significant damage sustained during her passage from the Caribbean season."
Visit Duluth officials received a letter last week from Greg Belanger of Amistad America which stated the needed repairs cannot be made in time for the ship to meet her commitment in Duluth.
"They are very sorry for the disruption this has caused our events," Shaw said. "It's a sad situation because I think everyone was looking forward to it coming."
Shaw said he heard the ship was damaged as it was returning to the U.S.
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"I heard it ran into rough seas that did damage to the some of the masts," he said.
The 129-foot, two-masted, eight-sailed schooner was launched in 2000, three years after the movie "Amistad" hit theaters. The movie centered on the true story of the 1839 mutiny aboard the ship as it sailed from Africa to the Northeast Coast of America. Much of the story involves a courtroom drama about the slave who led the revolt.
