HMCo #395p [Owner Launch for St. Y. Viking]

"It's a sizable yacht that requires this big a launch and is equipped to hoist it out on davits, but the 272-foot T. D. Wells-designed Viking (built by Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock in 1929) was indeed a major yacht. She --- and, of course, this launch as well --- were owned by George F. Baker, who had, in years past, come to the Herreshoffs for other boats. He owned two named Ventura --- one a New York 50-class sloop [#711s], and the other a big, unique shallow-draft sailboat [#867s], used for shooting waterfowl..." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 193.)

"[Item Description:] Handwritten notebook titled on outer cover 'Droughting Room. Blue Prints Record' providing a list of drawings with information in columns titled 'Issued To', 'For Job', 'Date', 'Date Returned', '[Date] Destroyed', and 'Remarks'. Vessels mentioned are #1266s BELISARIUS, #1267 FROSTFISH, #395p Owner Launch for St.Y. VIKING, #1265s NITRAMON, #1204s SILVERHEELS, #1233s RAINBOW, #1276s PRIM, #1275s MITENA, #907s PLEASURE, #931s NASSAU, #711s VENTURA, #900s IRIS, #982s WATER LILY, #891s WILDFIRE, #1147s WEETAMOE, #954s MARY ROSE, #880s JOSEPHINE, #788s MANATEE, #1146s ENTERPRISE, #1212s TRONDA, #1282s 12 1/2 for H. V. Reed, #1302s Amphicraft for N. F. Ayer, #1304s Amphicraft for Charles A. Welch, #1286s 12 1/2 for Mr. Maitland Alexander, #1311s Amphicraft for Dr. Seth M. Milliken, #1313s Dinghy for #663s RAMALLAH ex-ISTALENA, #1314s HMCo Yard Skiff, #408s PELICAN, #1315s BRENDA, #396p Power Tender for FONTINALIS, #397p Power Tender for FONTINALIS, #329p CAROLA, #1318s Sailing Dinghy for Henry S. Morgan; #1316s NOVA, #1319s Tech Dinghy, #1317s MANDOO II, #405p Surfboat, #1379s Fish Class for H. M. Lautmann (MERRY HELL), #1385s TINKER TOO, and #1384s AVANTI. 23 pages were used. Undated, the dates range from October 1934 to September 1936." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Notebook. MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.106. Box HAFH.6.3B, Folder Blue Print Record Book. No date (1934-10 to 1936-09).)
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"[Item Description:] Photograph negative marked on negative '1266 [#1266s BELISARIUS] 12/18/34' with a stern view of the fully planked boat under construction with her lead keel in the foreground. The upside-down and not-yet-planked hull for #395p Owner Launch for St. Y. VIKING is visible in the left foreground." (Source: Brightman, Thomas (?) (creator). Photo Negatives. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE14_02440. Folder [no #]. 1934-12-18.)
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"[Item Description:] Photograph negative marked on negative '1066 [sic, i.e. #1266s BELISARIUS] 1/19/35' with a stern view of the finished boat ready for launching on launching day. The bow of the almost finished #395p Owner Launch for St. Y. VIKING is visible in the left foreground." (Source: Brightman, Thomas (?) (creator). Photo Negatives. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE14_02520. Folder [no #]. 1935-01-19.)
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"[Item Description:] Spreadsheet listing original contracts (from 1923 to 1940) by HMCo in the collection of HMM (apparently from the gift of Everett Pearson). Listed boats are: #380p, #381p, #388p, #389p, #391p, #392p, #393p, #395p, #886s, #933s, #934s, #954s, #955s, #962s, #983s, #999s, #1002s, #1017s, #1054s, #1055s, #1057s, #1074s, #1078s, #1122s, #1125s, #1130s, #1131s, #1147s, #1152s, #1153s, #1154s, #1156s, #1157s, #1164s, #1170s, #1173s, #1174s, #1175s, #1175s, #1176s, #1177s, #1179s, #1180s, #1191s, #1192s, #1193s, #1195s, #1196s, #1198s, #1199s, #1200s, #1201s, #1202s, #1203s, #1206s, #1207s, #1208s, #1209s, #1210s, #1211s, #1212s, #1213s, #1214s, #1215s, #1216s, #1217s, #1218s, #1219s, #1220s, #1222s, #1224s, #1236s, #1226s, #1227s, #1228s, #1230s, #1232s, #1234s, #1237s, #1238s, #1240s, #1241s, #1243s, #1244s, #1245s, #1246s, #1247s, #1248s, #1249s, #1250s, #1251s, #1252s, #1253s, #1254s, #1255s, #1256s, #1257s, #1258s, #1259s, #1260s, #1261s, #1262s, #1263s, #1264s, #1265s, #1274s, #1275s, #1277s, #1279s, #1280s, #1281s, #1282s, #1283s, #1284s, #1285s, #1286s, #1287s, #1302s, #1303s, #1315s, #1508s." (Source: Rickson, Norene (creator). Table. Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection Item LIB_4220. HMM Library Rare Books Room (HMCo Contracts), Folder [no #]. No date (2010s ?).)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #395p [Owner Launch for St. Y. Viking] even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Viking (MIT Museum-made index card)
• Viking (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.

Year: 1932
E/P/S: P
No.: 395
Name: Viking
OA: 33' 6"

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.

"Year of finish (1935) from date of photo and date of construction plan." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. September 14, 2008.)

"Viking was a 272ft LOA steam yacht, designed by Theodore Wells and built in 1929 by Newport News SB & DD Co. #395p was Viking's starboard (owner's) launch." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 31, 2009.)

"Figure for draft from construction plan 002-116 (HH.5.00120): Viking Starboard Launch (1935-01-01)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 15, 2014.)

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