“To Boldly Go Where No FAN Has Gone Before!”
We left Schodack Island State Park around 10 am and drove about 2 hours north to Ticonderoga, New York to spend an hour or so at the Star Trek: Original Series Set Tour. This is “just” a stop in the afternoon on our way to our campsite in Groton, VT, but a very much anticipated stop for yours truly.
Back in 1969, when Star Trek: The Original Series was cancelled, the original TV sets were dismantled and destroyed. A few small items that served as set decorations were saved, but mostly ended up in the hands of private collections.
Enter a Star Trek Superfan, James Cawley, who is also an Elvis Presley tribute artist and actor. In 1997 Cawley began rebuilding the sets according to the original series set designer’s blueprints, exactly as they were built in the early 1960’s. He also began collecting various set decorations from sites like eBay and other private collectors, as well as from other fans who had come into possession of some set decor items.
The first sets were built in his grandfather’s barn, then in an old auto dealership building and finally ending up in its current location; a former Safeway grocery store in downtown Ticonderoga, New York. The sets today were designed to not be moved and are complete recreations based on the original blueprints. They are also the result of hundreds of hours of serious research and examination of thousands of video and photographs.
I’m told that these sets allow you to see exactly what they looked like at Desilu Studios between 1966- 1969. We were able to walk through corridors, sickbay, the briefing room, captain’s quarters, the transporter room, main engineering and the bridge of the USS Enterprise – 1701.
Our tour guide Ashley was so knowledgeable and so sharing of trivia about the sets. Some I already knew but some I did not. She had some funny tales of when William Shatner, (the original Captain James T. Kirk) had visited and shared some of his stories being on the set. Also Jonathan Frakes (who was NOT on the TOS but played First Officer Will RiKer on Star Trek: The Next Generation) visited as well. Cawley’s next project is to rebuild sets from the ST:TNG series, so there is another reason for me to re-visit this awesome place in the future!
They let Cindy and I pose for some photos on the bridge. Me in the captain’s chair, Cindy in the captain’s chair (she wouldn’t let me share that photo) and one with me in the captain’s chair and Cindy as my Number One. As she always is.
It was such a fun visit for this old fart who has been a Trekker for 57 years!
Awesome!
Thank goodness you didn’t wear a red shirt hahaha!