HMCo #488s Alpha

"[1898-05-01] Sun 1: Very fine & warm. Mod[erate] NW to N [wind]. Calm & dry. ... Off in 14ft boat of Mr. Baker's [apparently #488s Alpha] with boys.
[1898-05-17] Tue 17: Very fine. Mod[erate] to strong W to NW [wind]. Launched #488 Alpha, 14ft cat. ...
[1898-05-18] Wed 18: Very fine. Mod[erate] NW [wind in] a.m. Fresh SSW [in] p.m. Mr. Baker [owner of #488s Alpha] & [Sam?] Cabot here. ..." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1898. Manuscript (excerpts). Herreshoff Marine Museum Collection.)

"Two new boats were launched this week [between May 16 and May 19, 1898] from the Herreshoff shops. One is a 21-feet water line keel knockabout, built for a yachtsman in Buzzard's Bay. Her name is Sintram [#494s], and she is a duplicate of Jilt [#493s], that was launched and taken to Cohassett, Mass., not long ago. The other boat launched was a small catboat [either #488s Alpha or #489s Omega] of 15 feet water line length, without a cabin. Her name and destination are not known." (Source: Anon. "New Boats Launched." Bristol Phoenix, May 20, 1898, p. 1.)

"... Like A. C. Harrison, [Charles] Baker [a resident of Chapoquoit and member of the Woods Hole Yacht Club] was a prolific patron of Herreshoff. In 1895 he bought Edith [#456s] which had a 17' waterline, then in 1897 another Edith [#486s], a 21 footer. Also in 1897 he bought Alpha [#488s], a catboat that was a sister to Omega [#489s] owned by Mr. King, the developer of Chapoquoit. Baker bought Blazing Star [#515s], a 25 footer, in 1899, followed by three more 21 footers: Radiant [#548s] in 1900, Arethusa [#574s] in 1901, and Illusion [#611s] in 1903. ..." (Source: Littell, Browne. "Early Days of Racing in Woods Hole." In: Woods Hole Historical Collection (Publisher). Spritsail, Volume 10, Number 2, Summer 1996, p. 23-24. http://www.woodsholemuseum.org/woodspages/sprtsl/v10n2-EarlyRace.pdf, retrieved February 10, 2011.)

"[Item Transcription:] Handwritten (in ink) memorandum stamped 'Feb[ruary] 25 1899:] Memo.
Sails ordered.
1898 Oct[ober] 25. Mainsail. [For yacht] CORNELIA.
1899 Jan[uary] 21. Mainsail. [For yacht] 15ft boat built for C.M. Baker [#488s ALPHA] or King [#489s OMEGA].
1899 Feb[ruar]y 3. Mainsail. Racing Staysail. Racing jib. [For yacht] DEFENDER. [#452s]
1899 Feb[ruar]y 3. Mainsail. # 1 Staysail. # 1 Jib. # 2 Jib topsail. # 3 jib topsail. Making topsail ? [For yacht] #499 [COLUMBIA]
1899 Feb[ruar]y 25. Mainsail. Jib. [For yacht] JILT [#493s]." (Source: Hereshoff, N.G. (?) (creator). Memorandum. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDW02_01310. Folder [no #]. 1899-02-25.)
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"[Item Transcription:] [Signed handwritten (in ink) letter:] The new rig for the small boat [#488s ALPHA???] arrived in good order and worked first rate. We had to put on two mahogany blocks to raise the traveller above the tiller. I never enjoyed sailing a boat so much as this one and all the people at our place are pleased with her. She is a wonder. If it were only possible to make something in the 21 foot class that would act as this little boat does! But I am afraid the restrictions interfere.
[p. 2] I enclose a memo of our restricted classes as they stand today.
I think that a boat than can go well in a strong wind and a heavy short sea will win the most races in Buzzards Bay. We finished up the whole season as follows:
QUAKERESS, CYRILLA [#502s], AMANITA. EDITH [#486s], with the KESTREL, BOHEMIAN & SYLVIA next in what order I have forgotten.
Yours truly ...
[P.S.] A friend of mine wanted to know if the BLAZING STAR [#515s] could be changed to suit him and I referred him to you." (Source: Baker, Charles M. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_00160. Correspondence, Folder 1_14, formerly (84). 1900-09-11.)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #488s Alpha even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Alpha (HMCo-made index card)
• Alpha (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: Alpha
Type: Cat
Length: 15'
Owner: Baker, C. M.

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

• Alpha
• 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: Alpha
Type: 15' cat
Owner: C. M. Baker
Row No.: 25

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.

Month: Oct
Day: 13
Year: 1897
E/P/S: S
No.: 0488
Name: Alpha
LW: 14'
B: 5' 3"
D: 9 1/2"
Rig: Cat
CB: y
Ballast: Lead (o)
Amount: 325.00
Last Name: Baker
First Name: C. M.

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.

"[Sail number 76 (5th Class Catboat).]" (Source: Beverly Yacht Club. 1898 Yearbook. Boston, 1898, p. 91.)

"Charles M. Baker of Brookline was a Boston banker who in 1894/1895 had bought from Chapoquoit's developer Franklin King several lots in Chapoquoit on one of which he eventually built a large summer home complete with boathouse. For more information see Jenkins, Candace. The Development of Falmouth as a Summer Resort. 1850 - 1900. In: Woods Hole Historical Collection (Publisher). Spritsail, Volume 6, Number 1, Winter 1992, p. 23-24. www.woodsholemuseum.org/woodspages/sprtsl/v6n1-SummerRes.pdf, retrieved February 13, 2011." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. February 13, 2011.)

"Dimensions from Beverly Yacht Club Yearbook 1898." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. June 2, 2011.)

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