Following a year-long voyage to Africa and Europe, the schooner Amistad arrived in Mystic Saturday and is scheduled to arrive back in New Haven June 21.

The Amistad’s return to its home port of New Haven will come exactly one year after it departed, and again will be marked by a celebration and performances.

Although the 14,000-mile Atlantic Freedom Tour has been hailed as a great success, the ship is now in dire need of repair. With an exquisite sense of timing, the State Bond Commission Friday approved funds to make this happen.

Amistad America President, Gregory Belanger, was in Hartford Friday to observe the unanimous vote for the authorization, which will provide $250,000. The measure was initially enacted by the state legislature last year.

“The ship needs significant repairs,” Belanger said. “Sails need to be repaired or replaced. Two planks need to be worked on. And we have two leaks that need to be fixed.”

“We appreciate the funding,” Belanger added. “These repairs are critical.”

State Sen. Toni Harp, D-10, said, “The Amistad is literally Connecticut’s flagship and proudly represents our state and its residents as she sails the world symbolizing freedom and justice. It’s imperative for Connecticut to periodically invest in her upkeep to make sure she stays shipshape.”

Harp added, “The events following the original Amistad rebellion signal a turning point in the history of all mankind, and we have a sacrosanct obligation to preserve that.”

The original, La Amistad, was transporting 53 captured Africans to a port in Cuba in 1839 when the Africans staged a mutiny. After being caught on Long Island, the Africans were brought to New Haven, where they were imprisoned as they awaited trial.

Favorable court decisions in Connecticut and in the U.S. Supreme Court won the Africans their freedom. Many of them returned to Sierra Leone as international heroes in the movement to ban slavery.

The Atlantic Freedom Tour by the nine-year-old Amistad replica commemorated the 200th anniversary of Great Britain’s prohibiting the Atlantic slave trade.

The June 21 welcome-home ceremony here is being planned by the New Haven Museum & Historical Society, Amistad America and the New Haven Office of Cultural Affairs.

The tentative schedule calls for the ceremony to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Long Wharf Dock, with singing by the Immanuel Baptist Church Choir. The Amistad is scheduled to arrive at 10 a.m.

The Amistad will be open for tours from noon to 2 p.m. Panel discussions on the meaning of the Amistad will follow at 4:30 p.m. at the museum.

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