HMCo #40p Leila

"[1880-04-16] Fri 16: April 16, 1880. St[eame]r 60 [#60p Torpedo Boat for Peru]. Towed Leila [#40p] from Bristol to Fall River (Ferry Wharf) in 1-27m. Bristol Ferry to [blank] 57m, st[eam pressure] about 70 [lbs]. Leila dragging screw. In afternoon, Fall River (Ferry Wharf) to Bristol Ferry [in] 27 1/2m, and to Bristol [in] 34 1/2m. Steam about 100 [lbs], strong SS wind, small ebb tide. [This entry in space intended for May 1, 1878.]
[1880-04-18] Sun 18: April 18th, 1880. Leila [#40p]. Bristol to Fall River Iron W[or]ks 40m. Ferry to F.R.I.Wks 31m, st[eam pressure] about 140lbs, cutoff 5, small ebb tide. Reurning F.R.I. Wks to Bristol Ferry 27 m. (Brke clink (Ferry Wharf) in 1-27m. Bristol Ferry to [blank] 57m, st[eam pressure] about 70 [lbs]. Leila dragging screw. In afternoon, Fall River (Ferry Wharf) to Bristol Ferry [in] 27 1/2m, and to Bristol [in] 34 1/2m. Steam about 100 [lbs], strong SS wind, small ebb tide. [This entry in space intended for May 3, 1878.]
[1881-02-23] Wed 23: Sold St[eam] yacht Leila [#40p] to day to the 'Toledo & Lake Erie Fishing Association'.
[1926-09-18] Sat 18: Very fine & nearly calm. Took down flag staff for painting &c. Has not been down for many years, 10 or 15. Head was some rotten and [I] cut off 18 [inches]. Spar was made for 'Leila' [#40p] in 1878 and erected on [Love Rocks] lawn in 1884 spring." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1880 to 1926. Manuscript (excerpts). Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection [1880]. Diary access courtesy of Halsey C. Herreshoff [1881-1926].)

"[Summary of boats for] No. 40 [#40p Leila]. 16ft sail boat [#187806es], 2 row boats [#187808es, #187809es] & double ended steamer [#45p ??]." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. Penciled notes accompanying offsets in offset booklet HH.4.002.2, p. 26. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA.)

"... In 1876 Mr. [William] Young first came to Bristol, for a launch built for W[illiam] Graham, Esq. of Baltimore. The launch was named 'Coquina' [#29p] (from which I took the name for my 16' periauge [#404s] in 1888). She was 27 1/2 [ft] long, with 3 1/2in x 7in single engine and 'coil boiler' and was taken to 'Indian River', Fla., for the winter following.
In 1877, Mr. Graham had built by John, under Mr. Young's supervision, the launch 'Kelpie' [#43p] --- 45' x 6' 10'' with double 3 1/2 x 7 engine & coil boiler.
Kelpie was returned in 1878 to H.M.Co. in part-payment for the steam-yacht 'Liela' [sic, #40p], also built for Mr. Wm. Graham and under Mr. Young's supervision. Liela was of composit [sic] construction, double planked topsides, fitted with a compound engine 12 x 21 x 24 and 'coil boiler', and was quite fast. She was 100 1/2' o.a. & 15ft beam --- about 12' in w.l. [beam].
'Liela' was returned to H.M.Co. in spring of 1880, in part payment for a larger steam yacht 'Gleam' [#65p], built that preceding winter. 'Gleam' was about 115' o.a., 105' w.l. & 16' beam, 'composit', compound engine & square boiler --- for Mr. Wm. Graham, and supervised by Mr. Young & [he] was here all winter as 'resident inspector'.
About the beginning of the year of 1888 Mr. Young was again here with commission from Mr. ? [George S. Brown, the father-in-law of William Graham] of Baltimore, to oversee the construction of 'Ballymena' [#151p]. This yacht was steel construction, about 130ft x 18', powered with a 5 cyl[inder] quadruple engine & square type boiler. This yacht was launched in fall of 1888.
Mr. Young was of fine[?] extraction, a refined gentleman in character and apparently thought very highly of by the higher classes in Baltimore, and was a connoisseur in articles, fine character, and was fond of working as a silversmith, and apparently quite an expert, a wonderful fine 'shot' with rifle & trap shooting. A fine yachtsman, and I suppose, other accomplishments. Absolutely upright & honest in all his dealings.
We became very friendly and attached to each other, and he to the Herreshoff family.
Although friendly and I imagine 'engaged', he didn't marry Miss Mary Gilmor until in the early [18]'90s, and when both were well along in years. Mrs. Young was a woman of lovable character.
In 1899, when on a visit at 'Love Rocks' of Mr. & Mrs. Young and Mrs. Young's niece, Miss Alice Gilmor, on occasion of the launching of the 90ft Cup defender 'Columbia' [#499s], Mr. Young was stricken with (?)-hemorrhage and passed away at my house. A lement [sic] to all who knew him.
He was probably over 70 years at that time [sic, i.e. 74]. N.G.H." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. "Notes on Two Fine Portraits - Found by Ann and Brought to me for Identification." August 17, 1937. Copy. In: Francis Russell Hart Nautical Collections, MIT Museum, Cambridge, Mass. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, Series VI, Folder HH.6.126, Box HAFH.6.4B.)

"Navy Interest in Steam Yachts
One of the reasons for this new status for yachts was that the government, or the Navy Department, thought yachts might be a useful auxiliary to the Navy in the emergency of war, and believed that experiments and trials with them would be of use. Of course they had the steam yacht in mind and steam yachts and power boats certainly have been of great use during the wars, for training purposes in particular, but the Navy has made few exhaustive tests of their usefulness in this respect. However, one was the test of the small fast steam yacht Leila in 1881, and a seventy-seven page report of these trials was written up and printed in pamphlet form by three chief engineers of the Navy Department, one of whom later became Admiral B. F. Isherwood who is credited with putting steam on a firm foundation in our Navy.
Leila was 100 feet long; 15 feet 4 inches beam on deck; 11 feet 9 inches beam on waterline; displacement 37 tons. She had a very light coil boiler and a compound engine that developed 150 indicated horsepower at 188 revolutions per minute. Her consumption of anthracite coal was 2.2 pounds per horsepower hour; her best speed was 15.5 statute miles per hour, or 13.45 knots. Her propeller was a true screw of four blades, 4 feet 7 inches diameter, and 8 feet pitch. Her boiler was seven feet in diameter and composed of three separate coils as follows: the first at the top acted as a feed water heater; the next section, which was quite long, was the steam producer and made up of a tapered tube that was rather difficult to make, and it is interesting to note that the water entered at the top and circulated downward so that the hottest part of the coil was near the fire, quite the reverse position of the water in the usual boiler.
After the water and steam had traveled through this section it was conducted to a so-called separator which separated the dry steam from the water. This was necessary in that type of boiler, for more water was fed into these boilers than was evaporated so that the lower tubes were not burnt. After the steam left the separator it went through the third coil that was at the outside and away from the fire. The coil acted as a superheater and produced very dry steam that was capable of much expansion. The engine was a compound with the cyclinders mounted on cast iron columns which acted as guides for the crossheads, and made a beautifully simple arrangement. I am stressing the fact that some of the engines with this type of frame by the same builders lasted well over thirty years of intermittent use.
This particular model of engine, however, had an ingenious double slide valve that allowed an adjustment of the valve timing while the engine was running, and quite a little space in the government report was devoted to the performance of the engine with different valve settings or cut offs. There was a tank called the hot well in the pipe line between the condenser and the feed water pump which contained enough water to make up for the variations in the used feed water. Leila was three years old when these trials were made and she was considered a fast craft, but in the next few years speeds were very much increased." (Source: Herreshoff, L. Francis. An Introduction to Yachting. New York, 1963, p. 44-45.)

"We made a brief visit to the Works of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, of this town, a few days since and were surprised at the recent great increase in the business of that establishment. At present more than seventy skilled mechanics and workmen are employed there. Through the politeness of Charles F. Herreshoff, Esq, father of the famous boat builder, we were conducted through the various departments in the yards and buildings. ...
In the old boat house a steam yacht [#40p Leila] is on the stocks for a gentleman who resides on the North river; this yacht is 100 feet long, 15 feet wide and 6 feet deep; her speed will be 20 miles the hour. This craft is also of composite build. The old boat house has been lengthened out twenty-five feet to gain sufficient room for building larger vessels than heretofore. All the above mentioned vessels, machines, &c., are to be propelled by the Herreshoff patent coil boiler and yacht engines. ..." (Source: Anon. "The Herreshoff Manufacturing Company's Works." Bristol Phoenix, April 13, 1878, p. 2.)

"A steam yacht one hundred feet in length, built by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, of this town, for parties in Baltimore, Md., was successfully launched from their boat yard on Wednesday [July 31, 1878] last." (Source: Anon. "Locals." Bristol Phoenix, August 3, 1878, p. 2.)

"Leila, steamer, of Bristol.
Built at Bristol, RI, by Herreshoff Manufacturing Co., 1878.
48.20 tons; 95.7 ft. x 15.2 ft. x 6 ft. [Register length x breadth x depth.]
One deck, two masts, plain head, round stern.
Surveyed and measured, August 7, 1878." (Source: U.S. Customs Department, Bristol, R.I. Custom House Record Book, 1870s to 1904 (Collection of the Herreshoff Marine Museum), s.v. Leila.)

"[Abstract of register or enrollment. Pos. 532:]
Leila, steam yacht, of Bristol.
Built at Bristol, 1878.
48.20 tons; 95.7 ft. x 15.2 ft. x 6 ft. [Register length x breadth x depth.]
One deck, two masts, plain head [bow].
Enr[olled] and Lic[ensed] ([as] yacht) Aug. 31, 1878. Owner: John B. Herreshoff of Bristol. Master: John B. Herreshoff.
Surrendered [license] Sept. 6, 1878 at Baltimore. ([Record at:] C[ustom] H[ouse, Providence]).
Enr[olled] and Lic[ensed] ([as] yacht) June 8, 1880. Owner: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company of Bristol. Master: same.
Surrendered [license] May 26, 1881 at Toledo, Ohio. ([Record at:] C[ustom] H[ouse, Providence])." (Source: Survey of Federal Archives, Work Projects Administration. Ships Documents of Rhode Island. Bristol. Ship Registers and Enrollments of the Port of Bristol - Warren Rhode Island, 1941, s.v. Leila.)

"The Liela [sic, i.e. Leila], a new steam yacht built by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Co., for Mr. J. C. Graham, sailed for Baltimore, Md., last Monday morning [September 2, 1878], commanded by Mr. J. B. Herreshoff. Her time from Newport to New York was 12 hours, running under easy steam on account of a prevailing fog. The Liela is 100 feet in length, 15 1/2 feet in width; her engine is of the Herreshoff pattern of compound direct action; maximum speed 20 miles per hour; ordinary speed from 14 to 15 miles; consumes 150 pounds of coal per hour; her boiler is the Herreshoff safety coil of 250 horse power. She is built in the best manner and of the best material." (Source: Anon. "Locals." Bristol Phoenix, September 7, 1878, p. 2.)

"YACHTING NEWS. The Herreshoff System. --- By invitation of the builders, we recently had the pleasure of a trip on board the steam yacht Leila belonging to Mr. Graham, of Baltimore. The Leila, a cut of which appeared in our columns a short time ago, is 100ft. long, 15 1/2ft. beam and 5ft. 9in. hold. Her model is something to look at; for beauty, knife-like entrance and run, we have never seen anything like it. She has the Herreshoff stamp all over, not only in the incomparable fashioning of hull, but in everything, down to the very fittings, anchors and chains. In all there is evident an independence of thought and an intuitive genius of the most striking kind. The Herreshoffs do not stop half-way; they do not seek simply to improve some ancient arrangement, but toss it aside and begin de novo for themselves and with commendable results, which, we must confess, justify what in most others would be assumption and sure to end in failure. The engines and boiler of the Leila are similar to those illustrated in this journal, and are a marvel of lightness and elegance. To such an extent has useless metal been shaved away, that the eye, accustomed to the ordinary run of machinery, seems at first sight to detect a decided deficiency of material in their structure, yet practical experience with the engines is answer enough that something more than mere saving was kept in view, and that the metal has been so well proportioned to the strains it has to bear that they perform as well as any other, and are thoroughly reliable for the work intended. Although compound and supplied with independent cut-offs, they are simple in their working parts, and we question whether there is a better vertical engine in the market to-day. It may be of interest to note what the owner has to say of his experience with them: --- 'The Leila was in constant use from Oct. 5th to Dec. 5th [1880], making trips down the Chesapeake of ten days at a time; during this period everything worked well, and we estimate that she is safe and reliable and is a good sea boat. This is the third boat the Herreshoffs have built for me, each larger than the preceding one.' But we will not weary the reader with indorsements and testimonials we have before us concerning the Herreshoff coil and engine. Our object is to present to the public an American invention upon its merits, an invention which, to America's shame be it said, is to-day better appreciated abroad, even in far off Russia and Turkey, than it is in the land of its birth." (Source: Anon (C.P. Kunhardt?). "Yachting News. The Herreshoff System." Forest and Stream, April 15, 1880, p. 214.)

"STEAM YACHTS FOR SALE. --- The Herreshoff Manufacturing Company offer the Leila and a smaller steam launch for sale. Both have safety coil boilers, and can be had at a bargain.
THE GLEAM. --- On her recent trial the Gleam made sixteen miles readily, and the possibilities are that she can be driven up to twenty when her bearings are worn a little more. She has been sent to her owner, Mr. W. H. Graham, of Baltimore. [Note: The smaller launch for sale may have been Kelpie HMCo #43p which in June 1880 had been chartered by the HMCo to the Eastern Rowing Association (see Forest & Stream of June 24, 1880, p. 419). William H. Graham had traded in his previous two Herreshoff-built steam yachts Leila and Kelpie when he took delivery of Gleam.]" (Source: Anon. (C. P. Kunhardt?) "Yachting News." Forest and Stream, May 13, 1880, p. 295.)

"From the Forest and Stream. High Speed Steam Yachts. --- New Yorkers like to be considered fast, and when they build yachts, especially if propelled the by steam, the main if not only idea is to obtain a high rate of speed, something which shall exceed anything yet achieved. It was naturally supposed that we possessed, by long odds, the fastest steam yachts in America, until suddenly undeceived by the recent visit to this port of the Leila, built by the Herreshoff Mfg. Co., of Bristol, R. I. This wonderful craft opened the eyes of the New York public in the most unmistakable manner, and gave convincing proof that the East is very far ahead of us here, not merely in point of speed, but in all appertaining to construction and fitting as well. The Leila is 100ft. long, 15ft. beam, 6ft. deep, and has a composite hull with compound engines, 9 and 16in. cylinders by 18in. stroke, the steam being supplied from a Herreshoff coil boiler 5ft 8in. diam. During the races of the New York Yacht Club, June 10th and 11th [1880], the Leila steamed down the bay and went out to the Light-ship with the fleet. She picked up and ran by everything afloat, big and little, and was the wonder of pilots, steamboat men and owners. Without any intention of being invidious, it can truly be said that the Leila steamed in circles around some of New York's fastest steam yachts and outran the very fleetest of them all a couple of miles an hour. All this was done with only from 70 to 120 lbs. pressure and cutting off at one third. I t would have been merely a matter of a few shovels of coal more to run the steam up to 170, give her full stroke, and add two more miles to her speed, conditions under which there is nothing in these waters which could at all compare with her in performance. The Leila can make a passage at the rate of sixteen and seventeen miles, without the least trouble --- it is her ordinary working speed. If 'crowded,' she con go as high as twenty. With all due regard to the impressions of owners in this port, we do not believe that anything over fifteen has been reached under the most favorable circumstances, with possibly sixteen for the Promise and seventeen for Vidette. But Leila does not represent the highest attainable with the system followed in her construction. The builders are confident, and will, we believe, guarantee higher rates when called upon. If we are asked to assign the reason for the lack of high speed in New York built yachts, and to explain phenomenal performances of the Bristol craft --- which, by the way are rapidly taking rank with the 'Thorneycroft's of England --- we would point to the different practice in hull and engines as offering a ready solution. In New York we have been only following the ancient methods handed down to us from time immemorial. We have have the same clumsy build, innumerable little pieces of heavy scantling in the frames, braced with keels, keelsons, bilge strakes, clamps, wales, deadwood, knees and hooks, all of which contribute to increasing weight while adding only in a moderate degree to strength. Then we load the hull down with the old fashioned type of boiler, carrying a great body of water besides, and attempt to get speed out of the same old tugboat engine of the inverted type which has been passed down to us from previous generation. Of course, in model we whittle a little away here and fill out a little there, and give to engine framing a little more suitable form; but for all that, there is a great amount of of useless and damaging weight, which must ever remain one of the features of the old way of building. In the Herreshoff system, however, we detect a radical departure from all the shortcomings of the past and discover in their vessels and fittings an adaptability to purpose to be found in no others. Lightness and strength are the two great requisites of high speed, and these the Bristol builders have combined in a most striking and successful manner, to say nothing of the incomparable design and beauty of their models, alongside of which our efforts in New York seem clumsy and almost uncouth. They adopt the composite style of construction, iron frames and wood skin; select both from the highest quality in the market; screw bolt the plank to the frames, and as a result obtain the lightest, strongest and toughest hull imaginable. This is then supplied with power from their patent coil boiler, weighing just one-half of the ancient shell affairs, besides needing only a few minutes to raise working pressure. The steam is passed at high pressure into compound or single engines, which again are marvels of lightness, combined with strength, and through which the maximum duty is got out of the steam. In addition, they supply a very effective propeller of their own design, obtained after numerous competitive trials between launches and yachts. As they themselves design, build and equip, from keel to truck and from stem to stern, everything works in harmony and to best advantage. It is no wonder that with such superior, adaptability of all the parts the Herreshoff high speed yachts find no difficulty in keeping ahead of almost anything afloat in America. Some very erroneous impressions have naturally gone aboard that their work is too light and cannot stand the usual wear and tear. As we have numerous testimonials and indorsements at hand from gentlemen who have given their systems the most thorough test, and as parties building at the Herreshoffs once always turn up at the same place when they want to build again as well as from our own experience with their yachts and boilers, we are prepared to give them the fullest indorsement as thoroughly reliable and trustworthy in everyday practice, and in point of speed and elegance of design far ahead of old-fashioned affairs we here in New York dub fast steam yachts. In regard to 'sea-going' qualities we venture to say that no one knows, what able, dry, steady and easy sea-going characteristics a long, high­speed steamer may possess until he has driven one like the Leila into a head sea at a fifteen-mile rate. Her behavior in weather and water, which would have swamped our Lurlines, Promises, Ocean-Gems, etc., was astonishing even to us though our expectations ran high. We propose to revert to this subject at greater length in tho future, and, in announcing the Leila for sale at Bristol, Rhode Island, must rest content with the assurance that we have no interest in these yachts, other than to make a really good thing known to our yachtsmen. For steam launches, to hoist to davits, the system is especially adapted for obvious reasons; and for general use, attached to country seats and villas located at or near the water, their quickness for raising steam renders them ever ready adjuncts for sport or for business." (Source: Anon (C. P. Kunhardt?) "High Speed Steam Yachts." Forest and Stream, June or July 1880. Reprinted in: Bristol Phoenix, July 10, 1880, p. 2.)

"Editor Forest and Stream:-
In view of the claims to public recognition which the most economical method of generating and applying steam holds forth, we are willing to do our share toward solving the problems at issue among engineers, and consequently request you to publish the following: ---
We will he pleased to enter upon a friendly competition against the Perkins system of boilers and engines on board the Anthracite with our own coil boiler and compound engines on board the steam yacht Leila, upon such terms and conditions as may be mutually agreed upon. We hope, therefore, that an early reply to our proposition may be received from the owner or agents of the steamer Anthracite, as the questions of economy and speed are of vital importance to all steam users, and a better opportunity of determining to what extent steam can be expanded at a saving in fuel may not again be offered than during the stay of the Anthracite in our waters. Very respectfully. THE HERRESHOFF MANUFACTURING CO. Bristol, R. I., July 26th [1880].
We trust that this challenge will be accepted by the Anthracite. There is no reason why it should not, and there is every reason why it should. ...[Note: The challenge was not accepted, but was followed by two more editorial comments, probably by C. P. Kunhardt, urging the Perkins company to accept (see Forest and Stream of August 5, 1880, p. 4 and August 12, 1880, p. 24-25).]" (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. "Challenge to the Anthracite." Forest and Stream, July 29, 1880, p. 520.)

"The Leila. --- This famous high-speed yacht, the fastest of her length or size in America, has been completely refitted and over-hauled by the Herreshoffs, of Bristol, B. L, and is now on the market at a very reasonable figure. We have details concerning her, and a line of photos of the Herreshoff boiler, engines and yachts at our office for inspection of interested parties. As we have had the privilege of cruising in the Leila in smooth water we can personally testify to her speed, and as we have driven her in a seaway we know her to possess extraordinary seagoing qualities for a boat of her type. She can make good weather of it when other steam yachts would break up or be swamped. The builders are prepared, we believe, to substantiate these facts to any parties with bona fide intentions. What a competent board of engineers has to say about the Bristol boats can be found in our last issue, the demand for which has almost exhausted an extra large edition." (Anon. (C. P. Kunhardt?) "Yachting Notes. The Leila." Forest and Stream, November 18, 1880, p. 317.)

"Unusual activity is displayed at the Herreshoff works and much yacht work is in hand. ... The famous Leila [#40p], well known as the fastest thing of her inches, has been sold to parties in Toledo, Ohio, and will no doubt become a popular craft on Western waters, where her beauty and extraordinary speed are certain to be appreciated. She is to receive what little overhauling she needs, and will canal it to her new destination. ..." (Source: Anon. (C. P. Kunhardt?) "Yacht Building at Bristol." Forest and Stream, March 10, 1881, p. 117.)

"THE HERRESHOFF SYSTEM FOR STEAM-YACHTS.
The Herreshoff steam-yachts are modeled and engined for speed alone, the purpose being to obtain the highest possible speed while allowing large cabins for the comfortable accommodation of a considerable number of persons. To this end the hulls are made with as sharp water-lines and as much dead rise as practicable, to secure an immersed solid of the least resistance, which involves a narrow beam proportionally to length; but this proportion, ascertained from a number of accurate experiments made by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, is not so great as is found in many transatlantic steamships, and the results of the board's experiments with the Leila show the modeling to have been carried to that degree of perfection which renders the resistance simply what is due to the wetted surface. This perfect form of model has also the important advantage, for vessels of yacht size, that the resistance in| function of speed does not increase in a higher ratio than the theoretical one of the square of the speed. Vessels of the Leila's dimension when less skillfully modeled and driven above a very moderate speed, have their resistance increased largely above the theoretical law of the square of the speed.
To obtain with a given power the maximum speedfor a vessel of given linear dimensions requires not only the modeling of the hull to be the best possible, but that its weight shall be the least, too; and in this latter respect, as, well as in the former, the steam-yachts of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company have no superior, that company having long made the construction of such yachts a specialty and the subject of exhaustive experiments. But the light weight has to be compensated by corresponding excellence of material and workmanship and it is by a combination of these, with careful and skillful arrangement of the material and its fastenings, that the Herreshoff yachts are produced with|as great strength and durability as are commonly found in much heavier hulls.
The Leila is about three years old, and has been in constant service in Chesapeake Bay, Long Island Sound, and Narragansett Bay, without repairs or showing any signs of weakness or change of form, notwithstanding the rough weather encountered and the high speed at which she has always been driven. Her strength appears quite sufficient for the use intended." [Note: The Leila was the subject of a report published in 1881 by the Bureau of Steam Engineering of the U.S. Navy Department. The 77-page booklet contains a detailed description and data about the Leila, including tables containing engine performance data, drawings of her steam engine and coil boiler, and a lines plan. The above is the report's conclusion.] (Source: Isherwood, B. F., Theo. Zeller and Geo. W. Magee. "Report of a Board of United States Naval Engineers on the Herreshoff Motive Machinery as applied to the Steam-Yacht Leila, and on the Performance of that Vessel." Washington, Bureau of Steam Engineering of the U.S. Navy Department, 1881, p. 66-67.)

"... A description of the steam-yacht Leila (Fig. 49), built in 1878, will illustrate the Herreshoff idea. The boat is 100 feet long over all, and 95 feet 5 inches long from the forward edge of the stem to the after side of the stern-post on the water-line. Extreme breadth on deck, 15 1/3 feet; on the water-line, ll 3/4 feet; depth of hull amidships from lower edge of planking to top of deck beams, 5 feet 10 inches; draught forward, 2 feet 7 1/2 inches; aft, 5 feet 1 1/2 inches. Midship section, 54 1/2 feet from the forward edge of the stem. Coefficient of water-line, 62 per cent.; of midship section, 56 per cent.; displacement, 37 per cent.; dead rise, 21 1/2 deg. Angle of entrance at bow, 17 deg; of run, 28 deg. Frames, iron, 1 1/2 by 2 1/4 inches, 1/4-inch thick ; deck beams, 2 by 3 1/2 inches. Stem, oak, 6 inches thick; stern-post, oak, 7 inches thick. Planking, pitch-pine, 1 1/4 inches; keel, oak, 7 by 10 inches; deck plank, 1 3/16 inches. Bulwarks, very light, 30 inches high. The total weight of the boat, with machinery, water, and coal aboard, was 37 1/2 tons net. A brass propeller wheel was put in, 4 feet 7 inches in diameter, four-bladed, 9 3/4 inches long, with a pitch of 8 feet. The draught of water of the hull proper was so small that in order to bury the screw sufficiently the shaft was fitted very near to the top of the keel. The blades projected below the keel, which required the addition of a skag to protect the screw and support the metallic shoe underneath. The skag was 15 1/2 inches deep below the bottom of the keel at the stern-post and 5 feet long on the keel, being sided 7 inches. In some Herreshoff boats the skag is replaced by a bent brass arm, which is riveted to the keel and extends downward and under the screw and then up again to receive the heel of the rudder-post. The rudder was of metal, counterbalanced, the axis being placed at one- quarter the breadth from the forward edge. The engine was compound condensing, and had 2 vertical cylinders, placed side by side, one of them 9 inches in diameter, with 18 inches stroke, the other 16 inches in diameter, with 18 inches stroke. The pistons were connected with cranks on the shaft at right angles to each other. A surface condenser was employed, consisting of a single copper pipe running outside of the vessel under water around the stern-post. The boiler is a peculiarity of all the Herreshoff boats. It has a circular furnace, into which descends a double coil of continuous wrought-iron pipe 1 1/4 inches in diameter and 3/16 of an inch thick, arranged as if it had been wrapped around two cones, one fitting beneath the other. The flames play about these coils; all the water in the boiler is in this pipe, entering at one end as water and going out at the other as steam. The advantages of this boiler are light weight, economy of fuel, quick raising of steam, and security against explosions. In the Leila the combustion was 2 1/4 pounds of coal per hour per horse-power. A pressure of 125 pounds was maintained in the boiler with 350 pounds of coal per hour, the speed of the boat being 14 miles an hour, and it required only from 3 to 5 minutes after starting the fire to make steam from cold water to work the engine. A small house was built upon the Leila to cover the machinery. The pilot-house was in front of it, and the cabin aft.
The invention of the safety-coil boiler has led to a wonderful multiplication of steam yachts throughout the whole of the United States within the last ten years. On all the small inland lakes, especially in New York state, where rowing and sail boats have been owned by young men for years in great numbers, the steam yacht has sprung into great popularity. The boats seldom exceed 25 feet in length, and would not be large enough to register in the custom-house, even if they were subject to it, under the laws of the United States. They are usually open boats, carry from 10 to 20 persons each, and are the popular luxury of prosperous men who live near romantic lakes. The hulls of these boats are always built entirely of wood, after the fashion of large rowing barges, and sometimes have cabins, but usually have awnings only." (Source: Hall, Henry. Report on the Ship-Building Industry of the United States. Washington, 1884, p. 160-161.)

"The following is a list of the steam yachts built by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company of Bristol, R.I: ... Leila, 100 feet by 15 feet, built 1887, for William H. Graham, of Baltimore. One engine, 9 inches and 16 inches by 18 inches; Herreshoff coil boiler 6 1/2 feet diameter; speed, 16 miles an hour. ..." (P. 23-25; Source: Jaffray, Edward S. "American Steam Yachting." Outing, April 1886, p. 10-33.)

"Herreshoff steam power plants had first come to the attention of government officials through the spar torpedo boat Lightning [#20p], which the Navy had ordered in 1876, and by the performance of the big steamer Estelle [#35p] ... The Navy's respect for Herreshoff power plants seems to have further increased with its testing of Leila, which the Herreshoff Mfg. Co. made available, fully crewed, at no cost, apparently for promotional purposes. The Navy's comprehensive report (issued June 3, 1881) speaks in glowing terms of both machinery and hull: ...
Leila was first owned by William Graham of Baltimore, Maryland, who traded her in two years later for a larger Herreshoff steam yacht. In 1882, after the Navy's test, the Herreshoff Mfg. Co. sold Leila to a party from Toledo, Ohio. Her rig was removed before she left for the Great Lakes, and one of her masts became the flagpole at NGH's Love Rocks home, where it served for more than a half-century." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 17.)

"The two Leila [offset] books (HH.4.2.1 & 2) are numbered backwards in that NGH created 2.2 before 2.1. Both have complete offsets for the same half model, but the later (2.1) includes the two-foot-high bulwarks which fair into the basic hull. I believe that he re-measured the entire model after adding the lift representing the bulwarks. Then at the end of 2.1, he provides inside-of-planking offsets for the 'Pope's Nose' stern, no doubt from a separate sketch he drew.
On page 5 of 2.1, he lists a couple of drawings that I don't think have come to light. 'A' is for the stem area and 'B' is for the stern area. These were dated February, 1878. There's also a bolt list shown.
The offsets, as usual, are at every frame (their spacing for Leila is 15") giving the typical half-breadths at 6" intervals above the baseline (which in this case I think is the keel). The way NGH entered the numbers makes me think he used his offset-taking machine, or else a device very similar to it. ...
Leila had angle iron frames, so the only deduction for laying out their shape and making templates was 1-1/4" for the plank thickness. For convenience of the crew cutting the long pieces of angle iron into framing stock of the correct length, NGH provides the numbers on page 4 of 2.1, noting which ones will have bulkheads attached to them. (I wonder if this means the projecting flanges will be pre-drilled?) All frames were 1-1/2" x 2-1/4" x 1/4" angles, which he calls 'iron' but I suppose could have been steel. In those early years, I wonder how and when the bolt holes for the planking were formed?
From the heights and half-breadths, you can visualize some stuff around the bow: The straight keel timber, for example, tapers in siding from 6" wide to 4-1/2" as it runs forward from frame #6 to frame #2, and the 'chin' rises about 10" between frame #13 to frame #2. Otherwise, from #13 aft to the stern, it's perfectly straight and level.
My conclusion is that NGH's method of taking offsets from a half model was pretty well established when HMCo was formed in 1878, and didn't vary much moving forward." (Source: Bray, Maynard. Private Email to Claas van der Linde, March 10, 2021.)

"[Item Description:] Casting Book # 4, steamers #40p, #54p, #57p, #63p, #67p, #70p, #79p, #89p, #92p, #99p, #100p, #101p, #102p, #103p, #104p, #105p, #106p, #107p, #108p, #109p, #110p, #111p, #112p, #113p, #114p, #115p, #116p, #117p, #118p, #119p, #120p, #121p, #122p, #123p, #124p, #125p, #126p, #127p, #128p, #129p, #130p, #131p, #132p, #133p, #134p, #135p, #136p, #137p, #138p, #139p, #140p, #141p, #142p, #143p, #144p, #145p, #146p, #147p [castings by hull number; front page shows summary size and engine and boiler data for steamers 99 thru 146 as well as repair data for steamers #40p, #54p, #57p, #63p, #67p, #70p, #79p, #89p, #92p, #118p, and #128p]. Undated, vessels mentioned were built between 1878 and 1887. Dates mentioned for repairs range from 1885 to 1887. Note considerable informational overlap with Casting Book # 1, which as in this book also contains data for #99p through #116p, although it appears (!) that Book # 4 lists more patterns per boat than Book # 1. Likewise, considerable overlap with Casting Books # 2 and # 3 which also contain data for boats that are also listed in book # 4. It may well be that information in Book # 4 was copied from books # 1, # 2 and 3." (Source: MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.120-07. Castings Book 4. Box HAFH.6.4B, Folder Casting Record Books Vessel Castings Book 4. No date (1878 to 1887).)
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"[Item Transcription:] Photograph of steam yacht #40p LEILA, pasted on backing paper. Also pasted on this paper a typewritten note 'Picture Courtesy L. Francis Herreshoff. Data see U.S.N. Test Report'. Also pasted on this paper a typewritten note 'Steam Yacht LEILA. Herreshoff Co. 1881 [sic, i.e. 1878]
L.O.A. 100ft. L.B.P. 95.4ft. Beam on Deck 15.3ft at W.L. 11.8. Depth 5.8ft.
Draft (rabbet) 2.9ft. Displacement 37.3 Tons
Engine 2 Cyl. Comp. 9in x 16in - 18in Stroke. Boiler Double Coil (beehive) 485 Sq.Ft.
Middle model of the three to the left and over glass display case'." (Source: MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.156. Photograph. Box HAFH.6.7B, Folder Photographs. No date (ca1878).)
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"[Item Transcription:] [Early printed trade card showing woodcut of #40p LEILA on recto and compound steam engine and coil boiler on verso:] Herreshoff Manufacturing Company,
Bristol, Rhode Island.
Sole Manufacturers Of The
Herreshoff Patent Safety Coil Boiler.
Builders of
Steam Vessels, Yachts, Launches,
Portable, Stationary and Marine Engines.
Pumps, Propeller Wheels and Safety Engines.
Manufactory and Main Office at Bristol, R.I., U.S.
John B. Herreshoff, President and Treasurer. [Undated, after July 1878 (LEILA was launched July 31, 1878 and her image is on the trade card.]" (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Trade card. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Acc. 86.54. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Box 1), Folder [no #]. No date (1878 or later).)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled side-by-side half-sections and displacement curve titled 'LEILA [#40p]. With list of particulars beginning with 'Extreme Length 100ft. Load waterline 95f 5. Breadth extreme 15f 4. Breadth load waterline 11[ft] 11 1/2 …' and note 'Area of Waterline 726.5sqft. Displacement 129.2cuft'." (Source: Herreshoff, N. G. (creator). Side-by-side Half-Sections and Displacement Curves. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0568. WRDT08, Folder 44. No date (1878-02 ?).)
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"N/A"

"[Item Description:] Printed advertising leaflet titled 'Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, Bristol, R.I. Sole Manufacturers of the Patent Safety Coil Boiler, Builders of Steam Vessels, Yachts, Launches, Portable, Stationary and Marine Engines, Pumps, Propeller Wheels and Safety Valves', hulls, list of compound steam engine sizes, list of coil boiler sizes from A to Q with their dimensions, list of plain, single and double steam engines with dimensions, revolutions, steam pressure and horsepower, list of propellers with diameter and pitch, #40p LEILA on cover. Note that the table titled 'Descriptive List of Compound Condensing Engines for Stationary or Marine Use'' lists six engine sizes larger than 14" & 24" bore x 24" stroke with Corliss valves which apparently were only advertised but never built by HMCo. Note also the table titled 'Descriptive List of Plain, Single & Double Engines, for Portable, Stationary or Marine use.' which lists 14 sizes of simple expansion steam engines which could be doubled in power by adding an identical high pressure cylinder running in tandem with the first one and were then called 'Double Engines' (not to be confused with double compound engines which had high and low pressure cylinders). Several of these 14 engines (1.75"x3.5", 6"x10", 8"x14", 10.5"x18", 14"x24", 16"x28", 18"x28") may only have been advertised for there is no evidence that HMCo ever built engines of these sizes." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Leaflet. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Acc. 86.228A. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Box 1), Folder [no #]. No date (ca1879 ??).)
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"[Item Transcription:] [Envelope with woodcut of #40p LEILA in upper left corner and printed text :] 'If not delivered in five days return to
Herreshoff Manufactur'g Co.,
BRISTOL, R. I., SOLE MANUFACTURERS OF THE
Herreshoff Patent Safety Coil Boiler,
AND BUILDERS OF
Steam Vessels, Yachts and launches.
Also Engines, Pumps, Propeller Wheels, Safety Valves &c. &c.' [Addressed in ink to:] Mr.H. B. Pogue, c/o Centistles[?] Mfg. Co, St. Luis[?], Mo[?] [Postmarked Bristol, R.I., Mar 18 (1879??).]" (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. Correspondence (envelope) to Pogue, H.B. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Acc. 92.36. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Box 1), Folder [no #]. (1879 ??)-03-18.)
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"[Item Transcription:] Bristol, R.I.
July 26, 79
Dear Mother
I got along nicely the day I left you --- found Dr. Leach at his office & liked him very much too. This he is the most thorough dentist I have yet met. Owing to a little coolness[?] in my 2 teeth that needed filling & to his being previously engaged he only put a temporary filling in each & I have an appointment with him for Aug 13th. I shall try to see you then too --- I got all through so I took the 11.58 train to Fall River --- was an hour too early for Steamboat --- but it was very pleasant waiting in the saloon so I got home earlier than J. [JBH] expected me --- but it was so convenient to come that way & the day not being pleasant --- I decided to do so --- I feel quite indebted to Brother J[?] for directing me to so fine & pleasant a dentist who was also so near to you.
The next day Thurs. J [JBH] was going to Newport in the 'JAVELIN' [#52p] --- he prevailed on me to accompany him --- it was a pleasant day & we had lunch on board and a delightful sail --- stopped at Prudence Island for a friend of [daughter] Kate's --- who is here now visiting her --- the 2 children are very happy together --- Hattie Aldrich is a sweet child 2[?] y[ea]rs old. Yesterday John took his men to Rocky Point & treated them to a Shore dinner they were gone all the p.m. & had a fine time --- 51 went over in the 'JAVELIN'. Today is not very pleasant --- ask him to make some arrangement about your sides before he leaves --- I want you to have some pleasant drives, with love to all
Believe me aff & yours
Sadie
K[atherine] & I both send love --- I enjoyed my visit with you much & will try & come again. [Incl envelope with woodcut of #40p LEILA in upper left corner and printed text :] 'If not delivered in five days return to
Herreshoff Manufactur'g Co.,
BRISTOL, R. I., SOLE MANUFACTURERS OF THE
Herreshoff Patent Safety Coil Boiler,
AND BUILDERS OF
Steam Vessels, Yachts and launches.
Also Engines, Pumps, Propeller Wheels, Safety Valves &c. &c.' [Addressed in ink to:] Mrs C. S. Kilton, Stoughton, Mass. Care of Miss Harris. [C. S. Kilton was Catherine Sweetzer Kilton (1812-1880), mother of JBH's first wife Sarah Lucas Kilton (and grandmother of Katherine Kilton Herreshoff.] [Postmarked Bristol, R.I., Jul 26 (1879).]" (Source: Herreshoff, Sarah (Sadie) Lucas Kilton. Letter to Kilton, Catherine Sweetzer (mother). Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Item LIB_2230. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Box 1), Folder [no #]. 1879-07-26.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled timesheet with detailed times for #40p LEILA from Sandy Pt to New Yor 34th Street." (Source: Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_48590. Timesheet. Subject Files, Folder [no #]. 1880-06-09.)
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"[Item Description:] Envelope with printed image of #40p LEILA and note 'If not delivered in five days return to Herreshoff Manufactur'g. Co., Bristol, R.I., Sole Manufacturers of the Herreshoff Patent Safety Coil Boiler, and Builders of Steam Vessels, Yachts and Launches. Also Engines, Pumps, Propeller Wheels, Safety Valves &c. &c.' and addressed to 'Lewis Herreshoff Esq., 135 Clinton St., Brooklyn, N.Y.' and postmarked 'Bristol, R.I. Dec. 16'. On verso poststamp 'Brooklyn, N.Y., Rec'd, Dec 17, [18]80, 2 AM'." (Source: ?. Correspondence (envelope) to Herreshoff, Lewis. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Acc. 86.256. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Various), Folder [no #]. (1880)-12-16.)
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"[Item Description:] Colored ink on paper dimensioned plan of a lock with the maximum size vessel that is able to pass through drawin in (101ft LOA by 15ft 8in beam). Scale is given as 20ft to the inch. Stamped 'Herreshoff Mfg. Co. Bristol, R.I. Builders of Steam Vessels & Steam Machinery'. Undated, the style of drawing suggests this to be from the 1870s or 1880s. Found together with other ink on paper plan of lock. Only one yacht with a beam of 15ft and a length short enough to fit into the lock was built by HMCo in the 19th century and that is #40p LEILA. It is tempting to consider this sketch as having been made in preparation to her design, but there is nothing to support this and LEILA's first owner was from Philadelphia and probably had other requirements. Note however, that LEILA was sold to Toledo in 1881, requiring her to pass through this lock and it just might be possible that this drawing was made in preparation to this voyage." (Source: Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE03_02090. Colored Inked Plan. Folder [no #]. No date (1881 ???).)
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"[Item Description:] Colored ink on paper dimensioned plan titled 'Erie Canal Lock. Scale 16ft to 1in and showing a maximum length of 110ft and width of 17ft 4in. Undated, the style of drawing suggests this to be from the 1870s or 1880s. Found together with other ink on paper plan of lock which was speculated to be related to the 1881 voyage of #40p LEILA to Toledo." (Source: Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE03_02100. Colored Inked Plan. Folder [no #]. No date (1881 ???).)
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"[Item Transcription:] [Newspaper clipping that can be shown to be from the Bristol Phoenix, March 19, 1881, p. 2:] This company is now having erected a large frame building in addition to and adjoining the machine shop and boat works on Summer street, the new building being as large or larger than the original building, where so many fine large and small craft have been constructed and such a variety of first class machinery has been turned out. We visited the establishment a day or two since and by the politeness of Mr. Charles F. Herreshoff, were shown through the various departments of their busy shops.
Among the vessels now being built to order are --- one steam yacht [#72p Camilla] 60 feet in length by 9 feet in width for Dr. Holland, editor of Scribner's Monthly; another [#76p Idle Hour] of the same size for Mr. Carver, a prominent broker of New York city; and still another [#77p Edith] of the same size for a Mr. Woodward, also of New York; also one steam yacht [#78p Juliet], 45 feet long and 9 feet wide, for Mr. A. Newbold Morris, of New York.
A most beautiful steam launch [#73p Launch for St. Y. Radha], 30 feet in length and 5 feet in width, nearly completed, was receiving the final touches of the skilled workmen. This vessel is for Mr. T. Lorillard, and is one of the finest and handsomest craft ever built in this or any other country. Her keel is of oak, the inside planking of cherry, and the outside, from keel to upper works, deck, etc., all of polished mahogany. We noticed that this launch and the others mentioned were all put together with brass screws, --- no nails being used. The inside planking (or boarding) is put on in an acute angle from the outside planking, making the vessel much firmer and less liable to be wrenched or twisted out of shape.
All of the yachts and the launch mentioned are, or will be fitted with the Herreshoff compound engines, and safety coil boilers.
Two vedette boats [#74p 149 and #75p 150] are being built, each 48 by 9 feet, for the British government, both to be fitted with compound machinery and boilers, same as others mentioned, but of greater power. The yacht Sadie [#186704es] is being enlarged and rebuilt; she was formerly a sloop, but is now a schooner; her dimensions now are, length, 64 feet, breadth, 16 1/2 feet; she is owned by Mr. W. A. Cole, of New York.
They now have, nearly completed, a compound engine and boiler for a yacht 80 feet long, belonging to Mr. Mark Hopkins, of Detroit, Mich., where the machinery will be put in the yacht. The cut be-low is a very good representation of the Herreshoff Compound Engine. [Woodcut of a compound steam engine]
A writer in a recent number of the Scientific American says: The engines used in the Herreshoff system for marine purposes are of the compound condensing type, having feed and air pumps attached. The machinery of this system is especially noteworthy for its extreme lightness and for the judicious distribution of material, all of the parts having ample strength, and no portion being loaded with useless metal, which would rather detract than add to the efficiency of the machine. These engines use the steam with the highest economy, actual and prolonged tests having proved the efficiency to be at least 40 per cent greater than that of the non-expanding type. As to mechanical details of construction, finish proportion and general design these engines leave nothing to be desired.' The same writer concludes his article as follows: 'The entire range of the manufactures of the Herreshoff company exhibit careful and intelligent supervision, and workmanship that is in every way superior.'
The steam yacht LEILA [#40p], 100 feet in length, built by the Herreshoffs about two years ago, has recently been sold to a Club, at Toledo, O., where she will be forwarded about the first of May next.
The Company are building a number of engines and boilers for United States Navy launches, also constructing engines and boilers for running electrical light machines to be used by the United States Electric Lighting Co., of New York. The quickness with which steam may be raised, the freedom from danger of explosion, the lightness of both boiler and engine, and the perfection of the mechanical details, render this system valuable for this purpose, and admits of placing powerful machines in the midst of crowded cities without danger to life or property.'
It is a specialty at this establishment to do nothing but (first-class work, to build no second rate vessels. All the steam launches and yachts are finished up in the very best workmanlike manner in cherry, mahogany and costly kinds of wood. The Company has now in its employ about one hundred men, on boats and machinery.
It is a specialty at this establishment to do nothing but first-class work, to build no second rate vessels. All the steam launches and yachts are finished up in the very best workmanlike manner in cherry, mahogany and costly kinds of wood. The Company has now in its employ about one hundred men, on boats and machinery." (Source: Anon. "The Herreshoff Manufacturing Company." Bristol Phoenix, March 19, 1881, p. 2.)" (Source: Bristol Phoenix (creator). Newspaper Clipping. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE14_01220. Folder [no #]. 1881-03-19.)
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"[Item Description:] Typewritten letter, speed trials in Portsmouth (England), can't you build something for [Frederick Allen] Gower?', 'we hear nothing from James, I wish you could make him write oftener', floor of South machine shop is done, machines replaced, Nat altered some of their positions, #43p KELPIE has gone to Newport to serve Capt. Arthur for the day, Amasa [M. Eaton] is quite well again, Charley goes off fishing every day, love to Sadie and Katie, reports of #40p LEILA having been shipped." (Source: Herreshoff, Lewis. Letter to (Herreshoff), John [JBH]. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Acc. 86.32. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Various), Folder [no #]. 1881-08-26.)
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"[Item Description:] A group of at least 12 or 13 midship sections of different steam yachts, overlaid on top of one another, apparently to facilitate comparisons. Untitled. Some sections are labeled ('Deck #151 [BALLYMENA]', 'Deck #155 [AUGUSTA III]', '51 1/2ft yacht Feb[ruary] 1881 [???]', 'Vedette 1880-1 [#74p 149 and #75p 150]', '#59[?] [Open Steam Yacht Sidewheel]', '#57 & 58 Launch [Launches for U.S. Coast Survey]', '#153 [MADGE]', '#151 BALLYMENA', '(31)[?] [FRANCESCA (?)]', '150[?] [SAY WHEN]', 'LEILA [#40p]'. Undated (the latest yacht mentioned was designed in 1889)." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Penciled Sketch. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_09100. Folder [no #]. No date (1899 or later).)
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"[Item Description:] Photocopy of a photograph of four photographs tacked to a wall as part of NGH's collection in 1931, showing 1. Engines of the Late 70's, 2 1/2in x 5in and 5in x 10in, 2. Auxiliary air and feed pump, 1879, 3. LEILA #40p, 100ft o.a., 15ft beam, 1878, 4. ESTELLE #35p 120ft x 16ft, 1877." (Source: MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.160. Photograph (photocopy). Box HAFH.6.7B, Folder Photographs. No date (1931 ?).)
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"[Item Description:] Photocopy of 3. above 'Herreshoff Steam yacht' [Copy of photograph, part of NGH's collection 1931, 3. LEILA #40p, 100ft o.a., 15ft beam, 1878]." (Source: MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.166. Photocopy. Box HAFH.6.7B, Folder Photographs. No date.)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #40p Leila even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Isherwood, Benjamin Franklin, Theo. Zeller and Geo. W. Magee. "Report of a Board of United States Naval Engineers on the Herreshoff Motive Machinery as applied to the Steam-Yacht Leila, and on the Performance of that Vessel." Washington, Bureau of Steam Engineering of the U.S. Navy Department, 1881. (3,262 kB)
  Document is copyrighted: No. Detailed description of Leila, testing results and procedures, glowing praise of the lightness of the Herreshoff machinery and efficiency of the Herreshoff coil boiler. (Note, this report unfortunately lacks several pages and drawings.)

• Leila (HMCo-made index card)
• Leila (MIT Museum-made index card)
• Note: The vessel index cards comprise two sets of a total of some 3200 cards about vessels built by HMCo, with dimensions and information regarding drawings, later or former vessel names, and owners. They were compiled from HMCo's early days until 1920 and added to in later decades, apparently by Hart Nautical curator William A. Baker and his successors. While HMCo seems to have used only one set of index cards, all sorted by name and, where no name was available, by number, later users at MIT apparently divided them into two sets of cards, one sorted by vessel name, the other by vessel number and greatly expanded the number of cards. Original HMCo cards are usually lined and almost always punched with a hole at bottom center while later cards usually have no hole, are unlined, and often carry substantially less information. All cards are held by the Francis Russell Hart Nautical Collections of the MIT Museum in Cambridge, Mass.

Name: Leila
Type: Steam
Length: 100'
Owner: Langdon, Walter [sic, or William H. Graham?, "Speedwell" was built for Walter Langdon]

Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. "A Partial List of Herreshoff Clients." In: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. Herreshoff Yachts. Bristol, Rhode Island, ca. 1931.

• Leila
• Leila
• Argo ex-Leila
• Note: The L. Francis Herreshoff index cards comprise a set of some 1200 cards about vessels built by HMCo, with dimensions and / or ownership information. Apparently compiled in the early 1930s, for later HMCo-built boats like the Fishers Island 23s or the Northeast Harbor 30s are not included. Added to in later decades, apparently by L. F. Herreshoff as well as his long-time secretary Muriel Vaughn and others. Also 46 cards of L. F. Herreshoff-designed vessels. The original set of index cards is held by the Herreshoff Marine Museum and permission to display is gratefully acknowledged.

Name: Leila
Type: 100' power-steam
Owner: Walter Langton [sic, or William H. Graham?, "Speedwell" was built for Walter Langdon]
Year: 1881
Row No.: 372

Source: Herreshoff, L. Francis. "Partial List of Herreshoff-Built Boats." In: Herreshoff, L. Francis. Capt. Nat Herreshoff. The Wizard of Bristol. New York, 1953, p. 325-343.

Year: 1878
E/P/S: P
No.: 040
Name: Leila
OA: 100'

Source: Vermilya, Peter and Maynard Bray. "Transcription of the HMCo. Construction Record." Unpublished database, ca. 2000.

Note: The transcription of the HMCo Construction Record by Peter Vermilya and Maynard Bray was performed independently (and earlier) than that by Claas van der Linde. A comparison of the two transcriptions can be particularly useful in those many cases where the handwriting in the Construction Record is difficult to decipher.

"... Str. #40 - Repair Job. ..." (Source: Anon. [Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. (N. G. Herreshoff?)] No Title. [Handwritten Notes on Outer Cover of Notebook.] No date [ca. late 1880s.] Notebook in the Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, The Francis Russel Hart Nautical Collections, M.I.T. Museum, Cambridge, Mass., obj. no. HH.6.120.)

"Later name Argo, owned by Argonauts as per L. F. Herreshoff index card at Herreshoff Marine Museum." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. March 27, 2011.)

"Note that vessel name index card at MIT indicates that Leila had a "Comp[ound] con[densing steam engine with dimensions] 12in x 12in x 24". This would have been the same type of engine as was installed in #39p Clara, even though Leila's boiler was considerably smaller. It is likely that the steam engine info on the index card is erroneous --- unless that engine was installed as part of a repair job which is noted elsewhere." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. February 6, 2015.)

"The owner, William Hamilton Graham (1823-1885), was director of Baltimore's oldest banking house of Alexander Brown and Sons and brother-in-law of George S. Brown (1834-1890) whose grandfather had been the bank's founder and who in 1887 would order the steam yacht #151p Ballymena. HMCo built four yachts for Graham, all supervised by William Young (who became a friend of NGH and also supervised Ballymena's construction): #29p Coquina (1877), #43p Kelpie (1878), #40p Leila (1878), and #65p Gleam (1880)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. October 17, 2016.)

"A detailed list of castings for Leila's 9x16 by 18 in. steam engine appears on the January pages of NGH's diary for 1878 held by the Herreshoff Marine Museum." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. June 5, 2018.)

"In the absence of better available data displacement was estimated by using the figure for Gross Register Tons (43.2) from the 1890-91 Manning's American Yacht List and converting to lbs by dividing through 2000 (short tons). Note that this figure can only be a rough estimate because register tons as reported in Yacht Registers correlate only loosely with actual displacement figures." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. March 17, 2015.)

Note: Research notes contain information about a vessel that is often random and unedited but has been deemed useful for future research.