HMCo #678s Louise

"No. 678 [#678s]. Oct[ober] 1907.
22' w.l. Knockabout.
Frame spaces 10".
Deduct for timbers 1 1/8".
Deduct for planking 7/8".
Sheer height is to under side of deck.
Keel plank 1 7/8".
Base line for deadwood & lead 3'.0.0 below base line for hull
Sections of deadwood should far up to R offsets." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. [Handwritten (in pencil and ink) note in Offset Booklet HH.4.160.] October 1907. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA.)

"Wednesday afternoon the 21-foot knockabout Louise, launched at the Herreshoff boat shops Tuesday [June 9, 1908], was given a trial spin in the bay by L Francis Herreshoff, son of the designer. The craft made a good showing and will be delivered soon to the owner in New Bedford." (Source: Anon. "Notes and News of Local Interest." Bristol Phoenix, June 12, 1908, p. 2.)

"Bristol Notes. BRISTOL. R I, June 20 [1908] --- Interesting racing was witnessed the past week in Bristol harbor between the small keel racing sloops just launched from the Herreshoff shops, one the Delight [#679s], of 22 feet waterline, designed by Capt Nat Herreshoff for his children, and the Louise [#678s], designed by Capt Nat for W. Tiffany, New Bedford. The latter is a couple of feet shorter on the waterline, and was beaten before the wind and slightly in windward work by the Delight. The Tiffany boat is equipped with a trunk cabin, while her antagonist is an open craft with the exception of small deck areas forward and aft. ..." (Source: Anon. "Bristol Notes." Boston Globe, June 21, 1908, p. 39.)

"Herreshoff has built a small racing sloop for Capt. W. Tiffany of New Bedford, which has been launched. This boat, named Louise, is 33 feet over all, 21 feet on the water line 6 feet 3 inches beam and 6 feet draught. She very much resembles the class Q boat Eleanor [#669s]. She carries about 1,000 square feet of canvas." (Source: Anon. "Vigilant At Bristol." New York Sun, June 16, 1908, p. 8.)

"For Sale --- 21ft. knockabout. Designed by N. G. Herreshoff and built by Herreshoff Mfg. Co. of Bristol, R. I., in 1908. 33 ft. o. a.; 8 ft. 6 in. beam; 4 ft. 6 in. draught. Built in the usual Herreshoff manner. Cabin has 4 ft. 8 in. headroom with transoms. Good equipment, cushions etc. This boat was designed for an easy, single-hander, and a very able seaworthy boat. An admirable boat for day sailing or cruising, being perfectly safe and non-capsizable. Has always had the best of care, and needs nothing done to her for use next season. Hollis Burgess Yacht Agency, 15 Exchange St., Boston. [Though not identified by name, her dimensions, building year and type indicate this to be #678s Louise. With photo hauled out on ways.]" (Source: Anon. "For Sale." Rudder, December 1910, p. 53.)

"... James E. Stanton Jr., an early and longtime club member and sailor, who had been chief executive of New Bedford's most durable cotton textile mill, the Hathaway Manufacturing Company (later Berkshire Hathaway). James Stanton was celebrated among Buzzards Bay sailors for his daring maneuver during a race. His 30-foot Herreshoff sloop Kittiwake had been doing well against the opposition, until a tug and a long string of barges threatened to undo all her good windward work. Stanton studied the situation carefully, then made his decision. He sailed as close to the tug as he dared and held up a box of cigars. The tug's skipper instantly understood and jangled the engine-room telegraph to dead slow. As the first barge carried its way on the tug, Stanton sailed Kittiwake across the slack in the towline, tossed the tug's skipper the box of cigars, and continued to the windward mark. The tug quickly resumed speed. The opposition was left to wait for the whole string of barges to pass by." (Source: Howland III, Llewellyn. The New Bedford Yacht Club - A History. South Dartmouth, Massachusetts, 2002, p. 198.)

"... One of our family boats burned up in a boatyard fire during the war, and the insurance money was burning a hole in my dad’s pocket. Three of his sons were in the Navy and he wanted something for us when we came back. He found a 30-foot Herreshoff that was built for the Tiffany jewelry [sic] people in 1908. We had a lot of fun with Kittiwake, and eventually gave her to Mystic Seaport... her 100th birthday party was last year. ..." (Source: Anon. "Bruce Lockwood." WindCheck Magazine. 2008. http://windcheckmagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=588, retrieved March 25, 2014.)

"Kittiwake (ex-Louise)
HERRESHOFF CABIN DAYSAILER HULL #678 30' 9" x 8' 2" 1907
No other boats were built to this model: she was a special boat, designed by N. G. Herreshoff for Louise Tiffany, and cost $1,875 when new. She was purchased in 1944 by W. B. Lockwood who, a few years later, outfitted her with a new Sparkman & Stephens-designed Marconi rig and put on a new deck and cabin. Then, as Kittiwake, raced mostly by Mr. Lockwood's daughter Mary, this boat became a consistent winner in eastern Long Island Sound. Her hull is double-planked above the waterline; an unusual feature for so small a boat, but one which has proven itself, since her topsides after all this time are still flawless.
STATUS: Rig converted to Marconi, good condition.
DONOR: W. B. Lockwood
FURTHER READING:
See applicable portions of list for 1963.595, Nettle.
ACCESSION NO. 1974.929." (Source: Bray, Maynard with Benjamin A. G. Fuller and Peter T. Vermilya. Mystic Seaport Watercraft. Mystic, Connecticut, 2001, p. 76.)

"N/A"

"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph lead sections titled '678 ? [#678s LOUISE]. 1908'. With calculations arriving at 5750cuin of lead = 2370lbs minus centerboard slot of 482lbs for a total amount of lead of 1888lbs. (Note: The question mark in the title is correct. This keel is not for LOUISE which was not a centerboard boat and whose keel outline does not match the one on this plan. Overlay with the construction plan of the Buzzards Bay 18 class [#612s, #613s, #614s, #615s, #620s] shows a near perfect match. This would date this plan to ca. December 1903)" (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Lead Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_08910. Folder [no #]. (1903-12 ?).)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections titled 'No 678 [#678s LOUISE]. Scale 3/4in. 22ft w.l. Cruising Knockabout. Oct[ober] 1907'. With calculations arriving at a total displacement of 92.5cuft = 5925lbs." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_01610. Folder [no #]. 1907-10.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph lead sections titled 'Keel of No 678 [#678s LOUISE]. Scale 1/8 size. Oct[ober] 18 1907'. With note 'Lead required 2200lbs at .549 of w.l. As per drawing 2280lbs at [blank]'." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Lead Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_08830. Folder [no #]. 1907-10-18.)
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"[Item Transcription:] Order book with carbon copy duplicates of instructions given by NGH titled 'Herreshoff Mfg. Co. Orders from N.G. Herreshoff'. Relevant contents:
§88: Work Order [For] #678s. [When wanted] Soon. Blocks (1907-11-06)
§89: Work Order [For] #678s. [When wanted] In spring. Rigging [2 pages] (1907-11-06)." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Order Book. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE08_03460. Folder [no #]. 1900-02 to 1909-10.)
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① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦ ⑧ ⑨ ⑩ ⑪ ⑫ ⑬ ⑭ ⑮ ⑯ ⑰ ⑱ ⑲ ⑳ ㉑ ㉒ ㉓ ㉔ ㉕ ㉖ ㉗ ㉘ ㉙ ㉚ ㉛ ㉜ ㉝ ㉞ ㉟ ㊱ ㊲ ㊳ ㊴ ㊵ ㊶ ㊷ ㊸ ㊹ ㊺ ㊻ ㊼ ㊽ ㊾ ㊿
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"[Item Description:] Brokerage listing (File No. 1651) for #678s KITTIWAKE ex-LOUISE. Dimensions, particulars (Rig: Sloop, Location: Cleveland[?] South Falmouth[?], Price: 1500). Remark 'Steers by tiller. This boat has had very good care and is in good condition' With penciled note 'Withdrawn. Sept 37'. Undated, but the penciled note suggests a date of Sept. 1937 or earlier." (Source: Belknap & Paine, Yacht Brokers (creator). Broker Listing. MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.111. Box HAFH.6.3B, Folder Brokers Listings. No date (ca 1937 ??).)
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"[Item Description:] Ink on paper lines plan with body plan, sheer lines, water lines titled 'Lines Taken From Model of Kittiwake ex-Louise. Herreshoff Mfg. Co. Building No. 678 [#678s]. Designed by Nathanael G. Herreshoff 1907' with penciled note '2 prints sent to Thomas E. Uhl. Flower Hill Building Corp. 3 Glen Lane. Glenwood Landing, N.Y.'" (Source: Herreshoff, A. Sidney deW. (creator). Inked Lines Plan. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item WRDT04_04930. Folder [no #], formerly MRDW00. 1962-11-05.)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #678s Louise even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Louise (HMCo-made index card)
• Louise (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: Louise
Type: Cutter
Length: 22'
Owner: Tiffany, H. L.

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

• Louise
• 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: Louise
Type: 22' sloop
Owner: Henry L. Tiffany
Year: 1908
Row No.: 383

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: Sept
Day: 26
Year: 1907
E/P/S: S
No.: 0678
Name: Louise
LW: 22'
B: 8' 2"
D: 4' 3"
Rig: J & M
K: y
Ballast: O. Lead
Amount: 1875.00
Notes Constr. Record: New Moulds
Last Name: Tiffany
First Name: H. L.

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 257 days (contract to launch; equivalent to $7/day, 23 lbs displacement/day)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 16, 2024.)

"[Displacement 92.5cuft = 5925lbs.]" (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. Penciled note on pantograph hull sections taken off the original model in October 1907. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum.)

"Disp. = … 96cuft. = 6140 #. … Aug. 18, 1938." (Source: Anon. Penciled note on construction plan 076-082 (HH.5.05537). Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collections, MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA.)

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