The Herreshoff family business began in the 1870’s with the manufacture of steam-driven boats. But it is as designers and builders of sailing craft that the name is best known. Situated on the family’s original Bristol Harbor site, the Herreshoff Marine Museum houses over sixty restored craft, a unique collection of models created to aid sailboat design, plus numerous photographs and items of yachting memorabilia.
Across the road from the museum is the America’s Cup Hall of Fame, into which 70 legends of Cup racing have been inducted. The building also contains an impressive collection of America’s Cup-related items.
The Herreshoff Family
When steam engineer Nathaniel Herreshoff joined forces with his brother John Brown Herreshoff, a partnership of fine technical skill and astute business capability was born. Once the talents of ‘Captain Nat’ as a naval architect fully emerged, the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company’s steam powered vessels gave way to racing yacht design and construction.
With ‘J B’ handling the finances and dealing with the wealthy and demanding clients who could afford the expensive game of yacht racing, with Captain Nat’s designs proving fast on the water, and with a reputation for producing craft of only the finest quality, the business was prospering by the late 19th century.
Nathaniel Herreshoff was a most prolific sailboat and motor launch designer, and his creations dominate the museum collection.
The Big, Early America’s Cup Contenders
Nathaniel Herreshoff first entered the America’s Cup fray in 1887, and over the next twenty years he designed some racing craft of huge proportions. Captain Nat designed five Cup defenders - Vigilant, Defender, Columbia, Reliance and Resolute. In 1863 he skippered Vigilant to victory over the British challenger Valkyrie II. The shipyard built all of these defenders plus the next two, Enterprise and Rainbow, all victorious during the era of US ‘ownership’ of the trophy. Herreshoff clients were some of the biggest names in American industry and politics of the times.
A much later design, the 75' Defiant, which competed for the right to defend the ‘Auld Mug’ in San Diego in 1992, represents the Herreshoff America’s Cup legacy at the museum.
Herreshoff Yachts Still Going Strong in the 21st Century
Designs by Herreshoff range from the big boats of America’s Cup racing right down to eight foot dinghy tenders. Some of their most popular craft for racing and cruising were the smaller keelboats at around 28 feet in length. For fleet racing, the S-Class, designed by Captain Nat when he was 71 years old, was possibly the most famous. The S-Class was innovative in its day, a one-design class, powerful and robust but handled in most conditions by a crew of just three. A number of beautifully restored examples still race on Long Island Sound. The Herreshoff Museum collection includes two S-Class yachts produced in 1919.
In 1943 Captain Nat’s son L Francis Herreshoff designed the H28 as a family cruising boat. The H28 became particularly popular down under in New Zealand, and in the 1970’s with some approved design modifications, it began production there in fiberglass. More than 300 came out of the West Auckland yard of Compass Yachts, many sent off as kitsets for DIY owners to complete the fitting out. Despite the cruising lines, H28’s were regularly seen racing keenly on Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour. A number still grace the New Zealand yachting scene.
A Visit to Herreshoff Marine Museum
The museum is located on the corner of Burnside Street and Hope Street, Bristol, Rhode Island. It is 1.5 km north of the Mount Hope Bridge and a 30 minute drive from Providence. A visit can be combined with a tour of the nearby Newport Mansions, which overlook the waters where so many Herreshoff yachts successfully repelled America’s Cup challengers and where the family’s designs can still be seen sailing in impressive style.
Reference:
NZ H28 Yacht Owners' Association
Brian Cross - Brian is a feelance writer specialising in content for the corporate sector, based in Wellington, New Zealand.
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