HMCo #597s Ben

"[1903-01-08] Thu 8: Set up #597 [Ben]. ...
[1903-01-17] Sat 17: ... Turned over #597 [Ben] in forenoon.
[1903-02-06] Fri 6: Strong NW [wind]. Fine. Moved #597 [Ben] to cove lot. ..." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1903. Manuscript (excerpts). Diary access courtesy of Halsey C. Herreshoff.)

"Nos. 592 to 604 inclusive [#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s].
Bar Harbor Class.
Frame spaces 12 1/2".
Planking 1 1/8".
Timbers moulded 1 1/2" at head increasing 1/8 per foot.
Sided 1 7/8".
Keel steamed or bent 2 7/8" think[?]." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. [Penciled note in Offset Booklet HH.4.139.] No date [ca. October 1902]. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA.)

"A contract for sixteen [sic, i.e. thirteen] sloop yachts of the thirty foot class was received this week by the Herreshoffs. The boats are to be of one design and are to be drawn by lot next spring. It is to be known as the Bar Harbor class and the yachts will be constructed in the building now in process of construction on the east side of Hope street, opposite the construction shops." (Source: Anon. "Bristol and Vicinity." Bristol Phoenix, October 3, 1902, p. 2.)

"BAR HARBOR, Sept 20 [1902]. --- ... Prospects for the yachting fraternity next season are excellent. There is to be a single-design class built which will be uniform in every particular, the various members to draw for their boats. Those who will build are V. Everett Macy, A. J. Cassatt, W. G. Ladd, H. L. Eno, Edgar Scott, Edward Morrell, R. Horace Gallatin, H. M. Sears, W. C. Allison, J. M. Sears, Antonio Y. Stewart, and T. G. Condon." (Source: Anon. "Bar Harbor Happenings." New York Times, September 21, 1902.)

"Work has begun on the first of the new class of 30-footers known as the Bar Harbor class. These boats are to be built in the new shop constructed this fall directly opposite the old construction shop. There are to be fourteen [sic, i.e. 13] of these boats built from the same mould, and will be drawn by lot in the spring." (Source: Anon. "Yachting." New York Tribune, November 16, 1902, p. 10.)

"Ben, sloop, of Bristol.
Built at Bristol, RI, by Herreshoff Manufacturing Co.
10.46 gross tons, 8.71 net tons; 36.4 ft. x 10.4 ft. x 5 ft. [Register length x breadth x depth.]
One deck, one mast, overhanging head, overhanging stern.
Surveyed and measured, March 28, 1903." (Source: U.S. Customs Department, Bristol, R.I. Custom House Record Book, 1870s to 1904 (Collection of the Herreshoff Marine Museum), s.v. Ben.)

"[License issued to vessel under 20 tons. Pos. 31:]
Ben, sloop, of Bristol.
Built at Bristol, 1903.
8.71 tons; 36.4 ft. x 10.4 ft. x 5 ft. [Register length x breadth x depth.]
No specifications shown.
Lic[ensed] ([as] yacht) May 6, 1903. Owner: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company of Bristol. Master: N. G. Herreshoff.
Surrendered [license] May 28, 1903 at Philadelphia. ([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. Ben.)

"The following transfers of yachts are reported through the Hollis Burgess Yacht Agency: The Bar Harbor 31-footer Orissa, sold by George Atkinson, Jr., to a well known Boston yachtsman." (Source: Anon. "Yachts Change Hands." Forest and Stream, January 1, 1910, p. 24.)

"... G. P. Granbery, who has sold his handicap yacht Senora [#597s ex-Ben], sailed the Corinthian [#708s] and got the best of the start, but ..." (Source: Anon. "Grayling Leads the 50-Footers Home." New York Sun, June 15, 1913, p. 7.)

"... The Class P sloop Joyant [#709s] has been sold by W. H. Hackett to W. K. McKarg of Saginaw, Mich., who will race the yacht on the Lakes. Mr. Hackett has taken in part payment the Bar Harbor 31 footer Senora [#597s ex-Ben], built by Herreshoff. ..." (Source: De Casanova, Louis. "Harry Maxwell's Private Ensign to Be Seen on a Racing Yacht this Summer." Brooklyn Daily Eagle, April 19, 1922, p. A3.)

"N/A"

"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections titled 'Bar Harbor class [#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s]. 2nd model [Model 713]. 1st trial. Sc[ale] 3/4. Sept[ember] 25 1903 []sic, i.e. 1902'. With calculations arriving at a displacement of 337.5cuft [= 21600lbs]." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_03990. Folder [no #]. 1902-09-25.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections with radials titled 'Bar Harbor Class. # 592 to 604 inclusive [#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s]. From finished model. Oct[ober] 2, 1902. Scale 1/16. W.l. 30ft 9in'. With tabulated calculations distinguishing between 'displacement body part' and 'displacement total' and arriving at a total displacement of 330.5cuft = 21160lbs." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_04130. Folder [no #]. 1902-10-02.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph lead sections titled 'Nos. 592 to 604 inclusive [#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s]. Oct[ober] 7, 1902. 1/8 size'. With calculations (marked 'By planimeter') and note 'Required lead casting of 10000lbs with c.g. [at] 55.4[%] of w.l. = 17.05ft aft ...'. With note 'Dec[ember] 11, 1902. #592. With all w[ei]g[h]ts represented proved too deep in water and 1045lbs removed, was then 30ft 10 3/4in w.l. Have decided to take a piece of equal thickness off top of lead = 2 3/8in' and calculations to derive this amount." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Lead Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_09280. Folder [no #]. 1902-10-07.)
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"[Item Description:] HMCo Plan HH.5.02171 (029): Blueprint general arrangement plan with plan view and inboard profile titled 'Preliminary Plan of Bar Harbor Cruising Class [#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s]. Herreshoff Mfg. Co. Bristol, R.I. Scale 1/4in = 1ft. Oct[ober] 9, 1902'." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Blueprint. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0028. WRDT08, Folder 3, formerly MRDE08. 1902-10-09.)
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"[Item Description:] Handwritten (in ink) rating rule-related table on two pages with dimensions LOA, LWL, overhang fore & aft, mean length, freeboard fore & center & aft, breadth deck & w.l., draft, cube-root (displacement), 1st mast mean length, 1st to 2nd mast, J, P1, H1, B1, G1, V1, T1, P2, P2a, H2, B2, Q2, Y2,T2, sail area, sqrt(SA), sqrt(SA - NYYC Rule) for #605s RELIANCE, #499s COLUMBIA, #725s RESOLUTE, #529s MINEOLA, #663s ISTALENA, #666s AVENGER, New York 50s (#711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s), #411s GLORIANA, #685s ADVENTURESS, #617s COCK ROBIN II, #586s NELLIE, #709s JOYANT, #708s CORINTHIAN, #670s SENECA, Bar Harbor 31s (#592s, #593s, #594s, #595s, #596s, #597s, #598s, #599s, #600s, #601s, #602s, #603s, #604s), New York 30s (#626s, #627s, #628s, #629s, #630s, #631s, #632s, #633s, #635s, #636s, #637s, #638s, #639s, #640s, #642s, #643s, #647s, #648s), Newport 29s (#727s, #728s, #737s), #691s MORE JOY, #446s ALERION II, Buzzards Bay 550s (#733s, #734s, #736s, #738s, #741s), #617s COCK ROBIN II, #493s JILT, #732s SADIE, #460s KILDEE, Buzzards Bay 15s (#503s Class), Buzzards Bay 12 1/2s (#744s Class), #703s FLYING CLOUD, #669s ELEANOR, #722s KATOURA, #692s WESTWARD, #657s QUEEN, #719s VAGRANT II, #698s VAGRANT, #663s ISTALENA, and #743s HASWELL. With penciled note 'Measurements in ft & inches. Results in ft & decimals'. Undated (the youngest boat on this list is from 1914/1915 and this was probably prepared in preparation for NGH's sail area rating rule of 1914/1915)." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Handwritten Table. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE15_00100. Folder [no #]. No date (1914 / 1915 ?).)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #597s Ben even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Bray, Maynard. "Two Views of the Herreshoff Bar Harbor 31s." Day, Fritz and Frances. "Desperate Lark." Bray, Maynard. "Holding the Shape the Herreshoff Way." Wooden Boat #45, March/April 1982, p. 68-74. (520 kB)
  Document is copyrighted: Yes, used with permission. Copyright holder: Maynard Bray (text). Bar Harbor 31 class portrait with special emphasis on #602s Desperate Lark ex Cricket and detailed description of why Herreshoff boats have been able to hold their shape better over time than many other yachts.

• Ben (HMCo-made index card)
• Ben (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: Ben
Type: J & M
Length: 30'9"
Owner: Stewart, A. Y.

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

• Ben
• Teklina ex-Ben
• Orissa ex-Ben
• Senora ex-Ben
• 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: Ben
Type: 31' cutter
Owner: A. Y. & P. C. Stewart
Year: 1903
Row No.: 81

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.

"Sail No. BH-9 in 1921 as per New York Times of May 24, 1921, p. 23." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. April 1, 2012.)

"LOA 48ft 9in from pencilled note on construction plan 76-46." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. April 25, 2013.)

"Launch date signifies the date vessel was taken on low gear to cove for winter storage." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. November 4, 2011.)

"Built in 126 days (contract to launch; equivalent to $39/day, 168 lbs displacement/day)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 16, 2024.)

"Sail area 1492 sqft from rating rule-related table handwritten (in ink) by N. G. Herreshoff on two pages with multiple dimensions for the most important Herreshoff-designed yachts in the Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum. MRDE15, Folder [no #]. Undated (the youngest boat on this list is from 1914/1915 and this was probably prepared in preparation for NGH's sail area rating rule of 1914/1915)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. September 16, 2020.)

"Displacement 330.5 cu.ft. [= 21,152 lbs] from untitled two-page rating-rule-related table handwritten (in ink) by N. G. Herreshoff with multiple dimensions for the most important Herreshoff-designed yachts. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum. MRDE15, Folder [no #]. Undated (the most recent boat dates 1914/1915 and the table was probably prepared in preparation for NGH's sail area rating rule of 1914/1915)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. September 16, 2020.)

"Designed disp. on 30ft-9in W.L., 21415 lbs." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. Penciled note on construction plan 76-46.)

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