HMCo #385p Vara

"[1928-10-04] Thu 4: ... Mr. Harold Vanderbilt here inspecting his new power yacht [#385p Vara].
[1929-06-30] Sun 30: ... In evening Sidney [went] to Newport to deliver [a] new launch [#390p] to Vara [#385p].
[1929-08-08] Thu 8: ... Harold Vanderbilt here in his 'Vera' [sic, i.e. #385p Vara] and invited Ann & me aboard.
[1929-10-10] Thu 10: ... H[arold] Vanderbilt's Vara [#385p] arrived early [in the] a.m. and left at noon. Ann & me to dentist[?] in a.m.
[1930-09-27] Sat 27: ... Harold Vanderbilt came in Vara [#385p] later to talk about the big cruising yacht [#192301es Unbuilt Cruising Schooner] I designed in [19]25 - 26.
[1934-05-03] Thu 3: ... Harold Vanderbilt arrived in Vara [#385p] midday & left.
[1934-05-10] Thu 10: ... Vara [#385p] with H[arold[ V[anderbilt], Mrs V[anderbilt], Starling Bur[gess?] here. I visited the boat shop in p.m. ...
[1934-05-20] Sun 20: ... All yachts left this a.m. for Newport --- Rainbow [#1233s], Vara [#385p], Vanitie, [schooner] Atlantic & others. ...
[1934-05-25] Fri 25: ... Rainbow [#1233s] & H[arold] V[anderbilt's Vara [#385p] left for Newport.
[1935-06-11] Tue 11: ... H[arold] V[anderbilt]'s Vara [#385p] left after changes.
[1936-06-04] Thu 4: ... Rainbow [#1233s] towed away early by Vara [#385p]. ...
[1936-06-19] Fri 19: ... Rainbow [#1233s] & Vara [#385p] arrived.
[1936-06-26] Fri 26: ... Vara [#385p] & Ratsey's Zara [sic, i.e. Zaida] here [arrived] in night and Mandaly II [sic, #1317s Mandoo II] the new craft returning from the Bermuda with broken forestay fitting. ...
[1936-07-07] Tue 7: ... Rainbow [#1233s] & Vara [#385p] left in forenoon. ...
[1936-07-16] Thu 16: ... Rainbow [#1233s] & Vara [#385p] arrived in p.m. ..." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1928 to 1936. Manuscript (excerpts). Diary access courtesy of Halsey C. Herreshoff.)

"P O Box 116 Coconut Grove N. G. Herreshoff Bristol, R. I. Dec 12 1927 {1927/12/12} Dear Francis ... I hear the new Vanderbilt craft is to be kept in the shop all winter, which will prevent the H. M. Co from taking any large order, and I see no excuse why they should delay the work on Mr. Pynchons yacht. I do hope they are getting a move on." (Source: Mystic Seaport Museum, L. Francis Herreshoff Collection, Box 17, Folder 3: Letter from N. G. Herreshoff to L. F. Herreshoff.)

"... The steel cruiser Vision [sic, i.e. Vara] 150 feet in length which was built at the Herreshoff shops for Commodore Harold S Vanderbilt is about completed in the south shop at the Herreshoff plant. It was the intention to launch the boat but Mr Vanderbilt has changed his plans, for the winter so that it will not be necessary to launch the Vision until spring unless this space in the shop is needed for other work." (Source: Anon. "At Herreshoff Boat Shops" Bristol Phoenix, December 11, 1928, p. 4.)

"... From Herreshoff's, Bristol, R. I, comes the report that the 150-foot steel cruising power boat for Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt is practically complete, but a change in Mr Vanderbilt's plans for this Winter will make it unnecessary to launch her until Spring. So unless the room is needed to set up another large craft, she probably will remain in the shop where she was built. ..." (Source: Anon. "Eight-Meters Proposed For New Marblehead Open Class." Boston Globe, December 16, 1928, p. B18.)

"... Herreshoff's yard, Bristol, is busy with the construction of four large cruising yachts. The largest of the quartet is the 150-foot cruising power boat [#385p Vara] for former Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt, while the 105-foot yawl [#1078s Thistle] for Robert E. Tod is the largest of the two sailing craft. The other power yacht is a 70-foot cruising boat [#384p Shuttle] for Junius S. Morgan Jr. The fourth yacht is an 82-foot Class M sloop [#1074s Sheerness] for a Cleveland yachtsman, a member of the New York Yacht Club. This sloop is not for racing and is to have a gasoline engine for auxiliary power. ..." (Source: Anon. "Yachts and Yachtsmen." Boston Globe, January 29, 1928, p. 53.)

"Roy H Beattie of Fall River has been awarded the contract to construct a new marine railway at the Herreshoff Company's plant. The railway will be about 300 feet in length and will be located just north of the planing and sawing department buildings at the foot of Burnside street. The new railway will admit of hauling out the larger yachts. Work it is expected, will begin this week on the new project Mr Beattie and his men are at work repairing the railway of the south construction shop at the plant where the 160 footer Diesel powered cruiser is nearing completion. ... The 160-foot steel Diesel powered cruiser [#385p Vara] that has filled the north shop all summer, is expected to be finished and launched some time in October. She is plated, and the workmen are now laying decks and plating
the deck houses. She will be one of the comparatively few yachts equipped with a Sperry stabilizer to counteract the roll of the sea." (Source: Anon. "New Marine-Railway At Herreshoff Plant. Contract Awarded to Build Additional Hauling Out Facilities at Foot of Burnside Street." Bristol Phoenix, August 28, 1928, p. 2.)

"The steel yacht that is being constructed by the Herreshoff Company in its south shop and which is to be equipped with Diesel engines, is well along towards completion and it is expected that it will be launched about Nov. 1 The yacht is to be the property of Harold S Vanderbilt, when finished.
The yacht, which is 150 feet in length, is completely plated, the main deck is laid, the steel sides of her deck houses are in place and the workmen are decking the house in. The pair of engines and the Sperry stabilizer have been set for a couple of weeks and about all there is left to do is the inside finish work." (Source: Anon. "Vanderbilt Yacht Nearing Completion." Bristol Phoenix, October 5, 1928, p. 3.)

"... In the south shop at Herreshoff's, the steel Diesel yacht Vision [sic, i.e. Vara], being constructed for Harold S. Vanderbilt, is nearing completion so that the launching of the yacht is expected to take place in a few weeks. Workmen are busy on the interior of the yacht. The Diesel engines are in place as are also the Sperry stabilizer. The Vision is 150 feet in length. ..." (Source: Anon. "Cup Yacht Resolute in Herreshoff's Shop. Undergoing Restoration of Lead in Keel Taken Out When Rigging was Changed to Schooner Last Year. Boat to Have Original Sloop Rig. H. S. Vanderbilt's Diesel Yacht Vision to be Launched in a Few Weeks." Bristol Phoenix, October 30, 1928, p. 8.)

"... The steel cruiser Vision [sic, i.e. Vara] 150 feet in length which was built at the Herreshoff shops for Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt is about completed in the south shop at the Herreshoff plant. It was the intention to launch the boat but Mr Vanderbilt has changed his plans, for the winter so that it will not be necessary to launch the Vision until spring unless the space in the shop is needed for other work." (Source: Anon. "At Herreshoff Boat Shops." Bristol Phoenix, December 11, 1928, p. 4.)

"Herreshoff's sheds are so full of boats that they would be hard put to find room to set up one of the 12 1/2-foot knockabouts. The 150-foot steel cruising craft [#385p Vara] for Ex-Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt on the north railway fills the shop from end to end, but there is a practically completed 'S' knockabout under her port quarter, and another 'S' ready for decking under the flare of her port bow, while under the starboard bow a 43-foot powerboat is in frame, and further aft, flanking the Vanderbilt boat's midship section, is still a third 'S,' decked and ready to put the house on. The Hand designed V-bottomed cruiser is timbered out and partly planked in the small boat shop at the west end of the building. While on the south railway George M. Pynchon's 'M' sloop [#1131s Istalena], from the designs of L. Francis Herreshoff, is completely planked and has some of her carlines in. Astern of the Pynchon boat, the railway is occupied by the cruising houseboat Roamer [#215p] with a crew of men busy making changes in her deck houses. [Note: The reference to the 43-foot powerboat is unclear. The only 43-foot powerboat under construction during this time period was the William Hand-designed #389p Little Gull II which is referenced in the next sentence. Another powerboat built at the same time was #388p Stroller but she was slightly larger at 46ft 9in LOA. It is possible that the writer mixed up the two boats.]" (Source: Anon. "Yachts and Yachtsmen." Boston Globe, February 24, 1929, p. B13.)

"The new yacht 'Vara,' built in the north construction shop of the Herreshoff Mfg Co for Harold S Vanderbilt, was put overboard last Monday [March 25, 1929] in order that the space in that shop may be utilized for other work that is in process of construction on boats of various sizes is being finished up in the slip alongside the north pier." (Source: Anon. "Vanderbilt Yacht Launched." Bristol Phoenix, March 29, 1929, p. 2.)

"These are busy days at the Herreshoff boat shops and all about the shops and yards are active scenes preparing the boats for the coming season are apparent. ... Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt's 150-ft Diesel powered cruiser Vara is slated to have her engine trials this week. ..." (Source: Anon. "Busy Herreshoff Shops." Bristol Phoenix, April 16, 1929, p. 4.)

"Providence, April 25 [1929]. --- A gale tonight carried away the 150-foot mast of the yacht Resolute [#725s], famous defender of the America's Cup, at the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company's wharf at Bristol. The yacht was undergoing transformation from schooner to Marconi sloop rig, and her mast had been set in place only this morning.
In falling, the big stick, valued at $5,000, brought down about $2,000 worth of steel 'sheer legs' and crashed across the upper deck of Harold S. Vanderbilt's new steel yacht Vara [#385p], damaging the Vara's deckhouse and launches. ..." (Source: Anon. "Resolute's Mast Wrecked By Gale. 150-Foot Stick Breaks 15 Feet From Deck, Crashing on H. S. Vanderbilt's Vara." New York Times, April 26, 1929, p. 28.)

"The accident at the Herreshof Company's piers a week ago when the new mast of the cup defender Resolute was broken off 5 feet from the deck and in falling took down the big sheers at the head of the north pier besides damaging Harold S. Vanderbilt's new steel cruising yacht Vara's launches [#386p and #387p] and upper deck while a serious setback might have been a whole lot worse. No men were hurt and the damage to boats and plant are being repaired.
Steel for a new set of shears was ordered immediately and work on them is being pushed by the steel workers. They are expexted to have them completed and up in about one week.
The damage to the Vara's upper deck is being repaired ...
Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt's new steel Diesel powered cruiser Vara had her engine and speed trials and both were very satisfactory. The Diesel engines ran smoothly and without being forced drove the boat faster than the contract speed. ..." (Source: Anon. "Yachts at Herreshoffs." Bristol Phoenix, May 3, 1929, p. 3.)

"... Commodore Harold S. Vanderbilt's 150-foot steel powerboat Vara [#385p], which was in line of the fall, April 25 [1929], of [#725s] Resolute's big mast and the steel shears on the pier, had the pilot house quite badly damaged, but last week so good time had been made in the repair that it was hard to find the scars. However, with the two launches on the davits that were also damaged it is another story. One [#386p] was so badly smashed that she will have to be replaced by a new boat [#390p], but the other [#387p] can be repaired. ..." (Source: Anon. "Yacht Yards South of Boston Busy With New Work And Fitting Out." Boston Globe, May 5, 1929, p. A63.)

"Overcome by gas fumes while on board Harold S. Vanderbilt's power yacht Vara at Bristol Wednesday, five members of the crew, now at Truesdale Hospital, Fall River, are expected to recover. Dr. Mason, who is attending the men, asserted that, while he had not made a definite disgoals [?] of their cases, he was of the opinion that they were overcome by carbon monoxide gas. ...
The mate of the yacht, which is anchored in the stream off the Herreshoff shops, went ashore and reported that the men had been overcome. Dr. Alfred M. Merriman of Bristol administered treatment for some time, and then declared that the men should be taken to the hospital.
Officials at the Herreshoff plant could not tell how the men were overcome. Reports from Bristol are to the effect that the men were overcome in their sleeping quarters.
The Vara is a new steel yacht, launched a month ago at the Herreshoff plant, 150 feet long and equipped with Diesel engines and is one of the few vessels of her size fitted with a Sperry gyroscope stabilizer to steady her in a seaway. She embodies all the latest ideas in equipment and fittings in both owner's and crew's quarters, and was turned over to the owner about two weeks ago for a trial trip of a weeks duration, and was back at the Herreshoff plant for the slight readjustments in engine and machinery that are common to new power plants." (Source: Anon. "Expected to Recover. Five Men on Yacht Vara Overcome by Gas Fumes. Craft, Which Belongs to Harold S. Vanderbilt, Anchored in Stream Off Herreshoff Shops." Newport Daily News, May 24, 1929, p. 5.)

"[Vara had been the largest boat launched in Rhode Island between 1929 and 1941:] The Herreshoff Manufacturing Company boatyard will be the scene of another launching tomorrow [December 6, 1941] morning at 9 o'clock. ... 'Y. M. S. 18' [#415p] is the largest mine-sweeper yet made in Rhode Island shipyards and is the largest boat to be launched in the State since the construction of Harold S. Vanderbilt's 'Vara' [#385p]. ..." (Source: Anon. "Minesweeper to be Launched at Herreshoff Yard Tomorrow. Will Be The Largest Boat Launched In Rhode Island Waters For Several Years." Bristol Phoenix, December 5, 1941, p. 1.)

"A Tampa owned banana boat was reported foundered off the Mexican coast yesterday and according to word received here the crew, including some Tampans, was safe.
Enroute between Puerto Limon, Costa Rica and Mobile, the motor vessel Narwhal, owned and operated by Fair Steamship Corp., S.A., with headquarters in Tampa, was said to be a complete loss. No cause was given for the accident, and shipping men said here they had heard of no bad weather in the Yucatan channel.
Formerly the Susie Mae Hamilton, owned by Hamilton Brothers here, the vessel had undergone extensive repairs at the Tampa Marine yard before beginning operations between Central American ports and Mobile.." (Source: Anon. "Tampa Boat Lost Off Mexico Coast." Tampa Tribune, February 17, 1948 p. ?.)

"--- [No. in Reg. Book. 1947-48]; Narwhal '28 '48 [Ship's Name and Year of Build]; 356 [Tons (Gross)]; Pan[ama] [Country]; Tw[in]Sc[rew]m[otor]s[hip] [Description]; Puerto Barrios - Mobile [Voyage]; Bananas [Cargo]; Stranded on a reef N.E. of Cozumel, and subsequently sank. [Circumstances and place.]; 14th Feb[ruary 1948] [Date.]." (Source: Lloyd's Register Wreck Returns for the Quarter Ended 31st March, 1948, p. 9.)

"1928. ... There was a lot of work in the builders' shops. Herreshoff moved some boats to the South yard to make room in the shops for a 160-foot steel twin screw diesel cruiser (Vara) being built for Harold S. Vanderbilt. ..." (Source: Davis, Jeff. Yachting in Narragansett Bay. Providence, 1946, p. )

"Valient (PYc 51) ex-PC-509
Submarine Chaser/Coastal Patrol Yacht: Built in 1929 as the yacht Vara by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Co., Bristol, RI for Harold Stirling "Mike" Vanderbilt; Acquired by the Navy, 7 October 1940; Converted for Naval service at the New York Navy Yard; Commissioned USS PC-509, 27 December 1941; Reclassified as a Coastal Patrol Yacht and named USS Valiant (PYc-51), 15 July 1943; Decommissioned in September 1944 at Philadelphia, PA; Struck from the Naval Register, 14 October 1944; Sold by the War Shipping Administration, 15 June 1945. Fate unknown.
Specifications: Displacement 190 t; Length 150'; Beam 24'; Draft 8' 6" (mean) (fl); Speed 15k, Armament one 3"/50 gun mount; Propulsion diesel, two shafts." (Source: http://navsource.org/archives/12/010509.htm, retrieved March 18, 2007.)

"From: Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Vol.VII p 439
Valiant (PC--509: dp. 190; 1. 150'0"; b. 24'0"; dr. 8'6" (mean) (f.) ; s. 15k.; a. 1 3")
Vara - a yacht constructed in 1929 by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. at Bristol, R.I.--was acquired from Mr. Harold S. Vanderbilt on 7 October 1940; converted for naval service at the New York Navy Yard; designated PC--509 ; and commissioned at New York City on 27 December 1941.
Assigned to the Panama Canal Zone, PC--509 operated from that point escorting convoys in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea for the duration of her brief Navy career. She reached the Canal Zone on 2 February and pursued a varied itinerary during the first 14 months of her career as a convoy escort. She visited Guantanamo Bay and Havana in Cuba; Jacksonville, Miami, and Key West in Fla.; as well as Charleston, S.C. In May 1943, however, she began to concentrate upon the Canal Zone-Guantanamo Bay circuit exclusively. On 15 July 1943, PC--509 was named Valiant and redesignated PYc--51. Over the last 15 months of her service, she escorted seven convoys from Panama to Guantanamo Bay and returned in the screen of a Panama-bound convoy after the first six. Between convoys, she conducted routine patrols and participated in submarine searches, though it appears that she never saw combat.
After escorting her seventh convoy safely into Guantanamo Bay on 25 August 1944, Valiant headed north for inactivation. She stopped briefly at Charleston on 28 August and arrived in Philadelphia on the 31st. There, she was placed out of commission sometime in September and was turned over to the Commandant, 4th Naval District, for disposal. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 14 October 1944, and she was sold by the War Shipping Administration on 15 June 1945." (Source: http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/patrol/pc509.htm, retrieved March 2007.)

"PC-509. The 150-foot steel motor yacht Vara was built in 1929 by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Co., Bristol, Rhode Island, for Harold Sterling Vanderbilt, 466 Lexington Ave., New York. In 1930 the boat's call sign was MHGJ and in 1939 the address of record was 230 Park Ave. with the call sign KMPZ.
Purchased on October 8, 1940, and commissioned on December 27, 1940, under Lt. Cdr. Abraham C. Ten Eyck, USNR. Patrolled and escorted convoys in the Panama Canal Zone, Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico. Named Valiant (PYc-51) on July 15,1943, under Lt. James H. Gilman, Jr., USNR, and decommissioned at Philadelphia in September 1944.
Operated in 1946 by Walling B. Hamilton, Box 1071, Tampa, Florida, as the 356-ton yacht Susie Mae Hamilton, homeported at Roaton, Honduras, call sign KMPZ. Walling died in September 1946 at age 37 and the boat apparently went out of service.
ON 228424." (Source: Williams, Greg H. World War II Vessels in Private Hands. Jefferson, NC, 2013, p. 202.)

"... I have had considerable experience in motor yachts of between 100 and 150 feet in length. A yacht such as Harold S. Vanderbilt's Vara (150 feet), on which I lived for over six months during two of the America's Cup campaigns, has most excellent accommodations and a high speed of nearly 20 knots. She was most comfortable for short coastal runs and living in summer harbors. However, when her owner wished her in Florida for the winter, her deck erections had to be sheathed in, and the owner and his guests stayed ashore while his professional crew dodged storms from port to port down the coast. ..." (Source: Burgess, Starling. Letter to Arch Oboler, dated May 16, 1945. In: Howland, Llewellyn, III. No Ordinary Being: W. Starling Burgess: Inventor, Naval Architect, Poet, Aviation Pioneer, and Master of American Design. Jaffrey, NH, 2014, p. 408.)

"Vara, designed by Purdy Boat Co., of Port Washington, New York, was ordered from the Herreshoff Mfg. Co. by Harold Vanderbilt as a building-only contract. Vanderbilt obviously recognized Purdy's specialty as a leading designer of this type of craft. (Both of Vara's launches [#386p and #387p], however, were thoroughbred Herreshoff craft.) The twin-screw Vara had a steel hull, and two 750-horsepower Trieber diesels.
Like the other big yachts of this longtime Herreshoff client, this boat was given a name beginning with the letter V. ... As Vara took shape [in the North Construction Shop], the South Construction Shop gave birth to the NGH-designed 103-foot yawl Thistle [#1078s], followed by the 87-foot double-ended M-boat Istalena [#1131s], designed by NGH's son, L. Francis. Here in the North Construction Shop Vara was followed by Robert E. Tod's 92-foot power cruiser Katoura [#391p].
Besides furnishing elegant high-speed transportation, Vara would see service as a tender for the three Vanderbilt J-boats, Enterprise [#1146s], Rainbow [#1233s Rainbow], and Ranger, as well as the M-class sloop Prestige [#1058s]. She was one of the all-time-great tenders." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 170-171.)

"[Item Description:] Envelope marked in ink in what appears to be Thomas Brightman's handwriting 'Herreshoff Mfg. Co. From the water front. October 28, 1924'. It contains 6 negatives (no prints) of the Herreshoff waterfront but only one of them appears to be from 1924 as indicated by the old wharf sheerlegs which were replaced by steel lettice-work sheerlegs after the old ones had been accidentally destroyed on April 25, 1929. That photo shows the North- and South Construction Shops, the old sheerlegs, two steam yachts at the wharfs (including, apparently, #377p ARA), and, all the way to the left, the yard scow #190402es USEFUL II. The other photos show 1) a large sloop (probably #1078s THISTLE) whose mast is being stepped by the new lattice steel sheerlegs while a large power yacht (probably #385p VARA) appears in the right background, 2) apparently the same scene (faint and blurry), 3) another mast stepping scene with modern sheerlegs and #385p VARA in the background, 4) a view from the waterfront with North- and South Construction shops, the new sheerlegs and large yachts being stored on land in what was being called 'Peacock Row', and 5) another, somewhat closer, view of the same scene. This last scene is identified on another envelope as having been taken on NOvember 12, 1929." (Source: Brightman, Thomas (?) (creator). Photo Negatives. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE14_02040. Folder [no #]. 1924-10-28 and 1929-11-12.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled detail sketch titled 'VARA [#385p] Metal Mike [auto pilot]'." (Source: MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.124. Detail Sketch. Box HAFH.6.4B, Folder Detail Sketches. No date (ca1928 ?).)
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"[Item Transcription:] I was very glad to have your letter of February 14th, and to feel that you had some sympathy for my troubles in getting steel and bronze for the metal boats [#1078s THISTLE and #1074s SHEERNESS]. It finally arrived and we are now working overtime getting the steel in place.
Mr. Tod is of course somewhat uneasy, but considering that we have practically all of the interior ready for him, also the decking, deck erections, rig and rigging, etc., he is so far very nice about the delay and of course I don't expect any troubles in finishing his boat [#1078s THISTLE] at the beginning of May, which should be early enough.
He is all wrought up about the coming summer and considering what a dismal summer he had last year and how nice he has treated us, we certainly all hope that he will get a very satisfactory boat and that the saying will come true that the KATOURA [#1050s] was his folly of 1927 and that the new boat will be his ketch of 1928.
Mr. Sheppey's boat [#1074s SHEERNESS] is overboard and out in the Yard under cover in the new Shed, and we are finishing her up as fast as we can. The same thing is the case with Mr. Morgan's boat [#384p SHUTTLE], and we are now laying the keel for Mr. Vanderbilt's boat [#385p VARA] according to your suggestion, that is, parallel with our slip so that she will be water-borne at the stern before the aftermost cradle leaves the slide. This will of course put an enormous strain on the forward slide but the under pinning being almost new we don't expect any troubles, besides that the boat won't be launched before you arrive in Bristol, and no doubt you will give us necessary advice of how to go about the launching.
As far as new boats are concerned, that is building stock boats to keep our carpenters going, I would like to say that your suggestion of building an additional Fisher's Island 31-Footer is very good, but it has its drawbacks because we have already one of these boats [#1061s KESTREL] in the yard, and one of the last year's boats [apparently #1055s JUDY which changed owners prior to the 1928 sailing season] is for sale for considerable less money than we charge for a new boat. Besides that it seems that people are not so keen about getting perfectly well behaved, roomy boats as some kind of narrow canoes that appeal to the eye. It is really pitiful to see in what direction [p. 2] the present boat designing is heading. It is long, narrow, extremely expensive boats without any accommodations whatsoever, for instance you will remember the PRESTIGE [#1058s] which with her 80-feet over all and 54 1/2-Ft. waterline had only one main cabin and one double stateroom. This is of course all right for a man with Mr. Vanderbilt's purse, but it practically puts everybody else out of the game, however, let us hope that the pendulum soon will swing the other way, and that the boats instead of being afternoon boats will be real homes on the sea, the way a boat of course should be.
When I was in New York the other day Mr. Nichols showed me some figures computed by Mr. W. K. Shaw and these figures showed plainly what the present cost of running a 50-Footer amounts too, and, believe me or not, but he made it perfectly plain and Mr. Nichols agreed to it, that the cost of running a 50-Footer today amounts to an average of Eighteen Thousand Dollars a year. This is of course something which cannot be kept up forever.
We are making an addition to the gangway between the Mill and the upper part of the North Shop, an addition long enough (25 ft.) so that we can get more space for our cabinet shop, which so far has been very cramped indeed. This addition makes me somewhat uneasy in case of a fire and I have strongly put it to Mr. Haffenreffer that we must install a sprinkler system in the Shops as soon as possible so as to have whatever protection we can get against fire, and I take it that Mr. Haffenreffer will approach the Grinnell people within a few days.
I have done some scouting for more work for the Shop to be started as soon as Mr. Tod's boat leaves the yard, and I have very good hopes of getting one Composite 'M' Boat and a 120-Foot Power Boat, both boats probably will be to outside design. If we can get these two orders and they are reasonably well under way before the first of August I hope to be able to go home to Finland so as to be present with my whole gang when my Mother becomes seventy years old on the first of September, but this is of course only a dream so far and it is very doubtful if it ever will come true. [Neither of these two boats was built.]
The family is in first class shape except for Margaret who still is very tired, and I certainly hope that everything is all right in Cocoanut Grove.
Very truly yours, ..." (Source: Nystrom, Charles. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_05940. Correspondence, Folder 21, formerly 141. 1928-02-20.)
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"[Item Transcription:] [Typewritten signed letter to NGH in Florida on 'Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, Bristol Rhode Island' stationery:] Thank you for your letter of the 25th [April 1928], received this morning.
A photograph was received here, addressed to Mr. Draper in your care at Bristol, R. I., and we wrote Mr. Draper asking whether he wished it forwarded or not. Mr. Draper sent us a note saying that the address was correct and we therefore forwarded the photograph to him.
In accordance with your instructions I will deliver all your second-class mail after May first to Sidney, and the first class mail I will hold for your instructions after May 5th.
Mr. Morgan's 70-Foot Motor Boat [#384p SHUTTLE] is leaving today as soon as the weather is fit; Mr. Tod's new boat [#1078s THISTLE] is scheduled for launching next Thursday; Sheppey has been quite ill and has postponed the launching of his new boat [#1074s SHEERNESS] for a few days; BLACKSHEAR formerly the KATOURA [#1050s], is outfitted and is leaving here today or tomorrow; The LYNX [#307p] has been sold to Bradford Ellsworth and is being taken over to Lawley's Yard next Wednesday for the installation of a Sterling Trident Motor; we have got about three-quarters of Mr. Vanderbilt's frames [for #385p VARA] set up and we are very busy.
With all kinds of good wishes to you and
Mrs. Herreshoff, I am
Very truly yours, ..." (Source: Brightman, Thomas. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_06630. Correspondence, Folder 23, formerly 207. 1928-04-28.)
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"[Item Description:] HMCo 4-page promotional pamphlet with photos of #1053s PUFFIN ('built by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company to lines and instructions from her owner' [Junius Morgan]), #385p VARA, #1058s PRESTIGE, #384p SHUTTLE, #377p ARA, [#1074s] SHEERNESS, [#1131s] ISTALENA" (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Pamphlet. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Item LIB_6790. HMM Library Rare Books Room (Box 5), Folder 179A. No date (1930).)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #385p Vara even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Vara (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: Vara
Type: Diesel
Length: 150'
Owner: Vanderbilt, H. S.

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

• Vara
• Vara Vortex
• 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: Vara
Type: 150' power
Owner: Harold S. Vanderbilt
Year: 1928
Row No.: 713

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: 1927
E/P/S: P
No.: 385
Name: Vara
OA: 150'

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.

"Built in 496 days (order to build to launch; equivalent to 766 lbs displacement/day)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 16, 2024.)

"Displacement 190 [long or short] t." (Source: http://navsource.org/archives/12/010509.htm, last visit March 18, 2007.)

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