The Maritime Heritage Alliance (MHA) will begin a basic crew training course on Jan. 10 for prospective crewmembers of the historic schooner Madeline, which is docked in Greilickville.

The course will be held at the Grand Traverse Heritage Center in Traverse City. The four-session series is designed to train adults to crew Madeline as well as the MHA’s historic sloop Welcome, also docked in Greilickville.

The Jan. 10 class will begin at 7 p.m., with additional classroom sessions scheduled for Jan. 24, Feb. 21 and March 13, with an April 10 make-up date if needed. Part two of the training course will be held in late spring onboard Madeline.

The training is free for MHA members. A $20 materials fee will apply, however. Annual MHA membership costs $25 per person or $35 per family.

The schooner Madeline is a reconstruction of a mid-19th century Great Lakes trading vessel. Since 1991, the ship has sailed throughout the Great Lakes, providing dockside history programs. The MHA’s newest vessel, the sloop Welcome, is a replica of a Revolutionary War era ship.

For more information, call the MHA office at 946-2647 or visit www.mhatc.net online.