A ship replica on Samsun's shore: Tracing 1919 at the Bandırma Ferry Museum
Anchored on the Doğupark waterfront in Samsun's Canik district, this ship is a full-scale replica of the Bandırma Ferry that carried Mustafa Kemal Atatürk to Samsun on 19 May 1919. Open as a museum since 2003, it can be visited together with the surrounding Turkish War of Independence Open-Air Museum.
Near the center of Samsun, on the Doğupark waterfront in the Canik district, a large ship sits anchored by the Black Sea shore. It is a faithful, full-scale replica of the Bandırma Ferry, the vessel that carried Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and his companions from Istanbul on 16 May 1919, reaching Samsun on the morning of 19 May.
The voyage that began the War of Independence
The original Bandırma Ferry was decommissioned in 1925; the ship standing on the shore today was built to recreate that historic voyage. Construction was completed in 2001, and the vessel opened to visitors as a museum in 2003. The arrival of that ship on Samsun's shore on the morning of 19 May 1919 is regarded as the starting point of the Turkish War of Independence.
Wax figures and period furnishings
Inside the ship, a hall displays wax figures of Mustafa Kemal Pasha and his four companions in a meeting scene. The captain's bridge and a bedroom furnished with period pieces are also open to visitors. Another section exhibits documents and photographs from the War of Independence, while the deck offers views over Samsun's harbor and coastline.
An open-air museum along the shore park
The wide coastal park surrounding the ship has been arranged as the Turkish War of Independence Open-Air Museum. It features ceramic reliefs depicting the Battles of Gallipoli, a memorial wall for soldiers from the region who lost their lives, and bronze sculpture groups symbolizing the spirit of the national struggle. Visiting the ship's interior alongside the open-air museum lets travelers follow both the 1919 voyage and the broader course of the war in one place.
Visitor information
- Location: Doğupark waterfront, Canik, Samsun
- The ship's interior and the outdoor museum area can be visited together
- One of Samsun's most visited landmark sites
For most visitors to Samsun, the Bandırma Ferry and the open-air museum around it remain the most tangible way to encounter the city's place in the Turkish War of Independence.