HMCo #717s Barbara

"[1912-10-21] Mon 21: Went to NY by train to see H.S. Vanderbilt. ...
[1912-10-22] Tue 22: Meeting of 50 footers occurs at noon. Returned home in PM.
[1912-10-24] Thu 24: Have verbal order for 7th 50 footer. (#717) [Barbara].
[1913-05-15] Thu 15: Eight of the 50 footers have been delivered and [have] left.
[1913-07-23] Wed 23: Ran to Larchmont in AM and in PM. Sailed onboard [NY50 #717s] Barbara in race. Had fresh breeze and did not do well. Later ran over to Mr. Duncan's and ashore to dine.
[1913-07-25] Fri 25: Fine with fresh NW [wind]. Sailed on Barbara [#717s] in race and had fine time. Afterward ran over to Mr. Duncan's to dine.
[1913-08-16] Sat 16: ... Butler Duncan here in forenoon. Francis arrived home from [NY50 #717s] Barbara & NYYC cruise. ...
[1913-08-23] Sat 23: Fresh SSW [wind]. Start at 11 for cruise to eastward. Go down Bay in company of Roamer [#215p] & Dianthus [#289p]. See start of race of 50 footers, then outside. Rough sea. ...
[1913-09-23] Tue 23: Very fine with L[igh]t W [wind] & clear. [NY50 #717s] Barbara arrived to haul out. ...
"[1927-08-22] Mon 22: L[igh]t fog & nearly calm. Took buss [sic] at 8-40 for Newport and went out on Corsair to see King's Cup Race. Had a very pleasant day but not wind enough for good race. Left racing unfinished and went in at 6-45. Came home in Bubble. [The King's Cup was won by the New York 50 #717s Barbara.]" (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1912 to 1913, 1927. Manuscript (excerpts). Diary access courtesy of Halsey C. Herreshoff.)

"Sept[ember] 24 1912.
Nos. 711 - 712 - 713 714 - 715 - 716 - 717 [#711s Ventura, #712s Spartan, #713s Iroquois II, #714s Pleione, #715s Grayling, #716s Samuri, #717s Barbara (and #720s Acushla, #721s Carolina II)].
50ft w.l. Class N.Y.Y.C.
Frame spaces 18".
Sheer height given is to under side of deck. Deck 1 3/4".
In making moulds deduct
for planking 1 3/4"
for timbers at head 2 1/2" increasing 5/64" per foot for full length
[Total] 4 1/4"
Keel to lay on top of lead, and 5 3/8" with rabbate 1 1/2" above bottom." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. [Handwritten (in ink) notes in Offset Booklet HH.4.179.] September 24, 1912. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA.)

"May 21, 1924
N.Y.Y.C. 30[crossed-out, corrected to 40 (which is wrong, should be 50)]-footer with a 4-cylinder 3 1/2 in 5 Scripps motor driving a 2 blade folding propeller 24in x 14in P[itch].
Upper half of Popasquash course. Wind light N.E. Towing light rowboat.
[Followed by tabulated trial run data with best speed being 8.25mph (=7.17kn)]." (Source: Herreshoff, N. G. Handwritten note in Experiments Booklet '1911 Trial Trips and Experiments' under date of May 21, 1924. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum.)

"In the fall of 1912, we had orders for the noted New York Yacht Club Fifty Foot Class ..." (Source: Herreshoff, N. G. "Some of the Boats I Have Sailed In." Written 1934. In: Pinheiro, Carlton J. (ed.). Recollections and Other Writings by Nathanael G. Herreshoff. Bristol, 1998, p. 72.)

"... the most important work of the Herreshoff Company for 1913 was the one-design class of New York Yacht Club Fifties for there were nine of this one-design class built that winter, which seems strange these days when a yacht of the same overall length recently built cost over two hundred thousand dollars. Although the Fifties were of about the best material and workmanship that ever went into yachts of their size, they were so efficiently built that it is said they only cost approximately seventeen thousand dollars apiece in 1913. The general dimensions of these Fifties were: L.O.A., seventy-two feet; L.W.L., fifty feet; beam, fourteen feet six inches; draft, nine feet nine inches. ...
The Fifties were raced very hotly the first two years but had few protests and no serious collisions. The author raced on 'Barbara' many races the first two years and can say that under their original rig they were fine, comfortable racing yachts when they had a crew of four or more professionals, but after World War I they were too expensive to run even if good crews had been available so several were changed to yawls or schooners, or leg-o'-mutton sloops. However, the Astor Cup for sloops has been won by one or another of them about nine times, ..." (Source: Herreshoff, L. Francis. The Wizard of Bristol. The Life and Achievements of Nathanael Greene Herreshoff, together with An Account of Some of the Yachts he Designed. New York, 1953, p. 283-284.)

"The New York Yacht Club Fifties came out in 1913, and perhaps this was the largest class of sizeable one-design yachts the world has ever seen. There were nine of them with the dimensions of 72' LOA; 50' LWL; 14.5' beam; 9.75' draft. ... The Fifties raced very hotly the first few years and made some very close starts, and as I remember it there were few protests and no serious collisions. I raced on the one named Barbara [#717s] many times; she was handled by Bob Emmons who had owned Avenger and was to be the manager of the next cup defender Resolute. One or another of the Fifties won the Astor Cup nine times under a sloop rig, and, as Pleione [#714s] had won four Astor Cups under a schooner rig, this makes by far the greatest number of times these cups were won by vessels of the same model. In my opinion the Fifties were about the last high-grade, reasonably-priced yachts built. They were 72' OA, and of late years there have been several yachts built with this same length on deck that cost fifteen times as much while the cost of clothes, food and real estate has only increased some three times. Some of the reasons for this great difference in cost of yachts now and in the year the Fifties were built (and that year happened to be the year the income tax started) are as follows:
1. The Fifties were designed and built completely --- sails, spars, rigging, hull, and so forth, by one concern. The only things I can think of now that the builders did not make were the stoves, water-closets, and the larger rigging blocks.
2. Good plant management is the principal way of decreasing the cost of building yachts and, while this can only be learned by experience and the use of common sense, it is a fact that in those days there were two or three yacht yards that were well managed. One of the simple things of good management was to have all of the materials on hand before they were needed, and in those days the yacht yards carried an inventory of materials at least ten times as large as at present. This often allowed them to buy at considerable reduction in price.
3. The spirit, or enthusiasm and pride, of the workmen were important factors in building yachts quickly and well, and I do not know how this was arranged but, I do know that the workers were almost all paid different wages according to their accomplishments.
At present, almost all yachts are designed by one concern and assembled by another. This makes for never-ending complication and, as the designing concern is paid its commission based on the cost of the yacht, they seem to do little nowadays to simplify the construction. I have used the word 'assemble' to describe what was once called 'building a yacht' for today we even hear of yachts' keels being cast hundreds of miles away instead of the mold being set up on the stocks where the yacht is to be built, while the other parts of the yacht may be made by ten or more distant concerns. In the meantime, the art of yacht building, which has taken thousands of years to develop, is lost, and materials such as laminated wood and plastics are substituted in an effort to get around this lack of know-how, but the weight and cost of these materials is so much more than natural wood that the result is not very satisfactory.
As for the workers, they are paid alike and seem to try to make the job last as long as possible. Some of them who wouldn't know an adz if they stumbled over it, try pretty hard to master the new techniques and only time will tell if they will be successful. The modern worker hates all hand tools simply because he does not know how to sharpen or lubricate them, but I have known men who could swing a broad ax all day and every time the ax struck it would lop off a shaving you could cook a breakfast with. These men hewed so close to the line that to finish the job, be it straight, curved or rounded, it only took a few strokes with a well-sharpened plane whose sole was rubbed with paraffin. And that is how yachts were built in those times which is quite different from the present when workmen only want to work with materials they can finish with a power sander.
I have used all these words to try to explain why the New York Yacht Club Fifties cost only $17,000.00 while three or four modern yachts of the same length cost $250,000.00.
For crew the Fifties had a captain, two sailors and a steward but, even by their second year (and second year of the income tax) several of the owners complained about the cost of running them, and that was one of the reasons the New York Yacht Club Forties came into existence a few years later." (Source: Herreshoff, L. Francis. An Introduction to Yachting. New York, 1963, p. 175.)

"[Abstract of register or enrollment. Pos. 95:]
Barbara, sloop yacht (knockabout rig), of Bristol.
Built at Bristol, 1913.
25 tons; 57 ft. x 14.5 ft. x 9.2 ft. [Register length x breadth x depth.]
One deck, one mast, overhanging head [bow].
Lic[ensed] and Lic[ensed] (consolidated) ([as] yacht) Apr. 19, 1913. Owner: Herreshoff Manufacturing Company of Bristol. Master: John B. Herreshoff, Bristol.
Surrendered [license] July 2, 1913 at New York. ([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. Barbara.)

"Prof. William Hallock, official measurer of the New York Yacht Club, was stricken with apoplexy, Sunday [May 4, 1913] morning about 10.30 o'clock, on board the sloop Barbara, in the harbor off the Herreshoff boat shops. Prof. Hallock came here to take the measurements of Harry Payne Whitney's sloop Barbara, and was overcome with the shock while on board the craft. Dr A. M. Merriman, who was hurriedly called, attended the aged professor and he was removed to the Hotel Belvedere. A telegram was sent to his relatives in New York who, with Dr. Seward, the family physician, arrived Sunday evening about 9 o'clock. Prof. Hallock regained consciousness during the evening and recognized his relatives and Dr. Seward. His left side is paralyzed. He is a professor in Columbia College and is 74 years old.
Prof. Hallock rested comfortably last night, and his condition was more favorable this morning." (Source: Anon. "Professor Stricken with Apoplexy." Bristol Phoenix, May 6, 1913, p. 1.)

"Prof. William Hallock of New York, Measurer of the New York Yacht Club, who suffered an apoplectic stroke a week ago Sunday [May 4, 1913] while engaged in measuring the sloop yacht Barbara in the harbor off the Herreshoff shops, was removed Saturday afternoon to the Homoeopathic Hospital of Rhode Island in Providence. He had been at the Hotel Belvedere since the shock. He was taken to the city in a private ambulance. Hopes are entertained for his recovery." (Source: Anon. "Removed to Hospital." Bristol Phoenix, May 13, 1913, p. 3.)

"... With the exception of Carolina [#721s], owned by Vice Commodore George Nichols of the New York Yacht Club, all the N. Y. Y. C. one-design 50-footers have changed owners within the last year. F. D. M. Strachan has sold his Harpoon [#720s ex-Acushla] to L. V. Lockwood of the N. Y. Y. C, Harry B Plant the Spartan [#712s] to Carroll B. Alker. Commodore Ralph Ellis of the Seawanhaka-Corinthian Yacht Club the Iroquois II [#713s] to Vice Commodore Paul Hammond of the same club, Frank B. Paine of Boston the Barbara [#717s] to Isaac B. Merriman of the N. Y. Y. C., the Pleione [#714s] to Kenneth F. Wood of Saylerville, R. I. and L F Crofoot of Omaha, a member of the Eastern Yacht Club, the Virginia [#716s] to Walter K. Shaw of the same club. These transfers were all made since the close of the 1923 season, while Clifford D. Mallory purchased the Grayling [#715s] from former Commodore J. P. Morgan early this year and in June former commodore Aemillus Jarvis of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club of Toronto purchased the Istalena [#711s] and had her converted to schooner rig. ..." (Source: Anon. "Notes From The Week's Log." Boston Globe, December 2, 1923, p. 41.)

"... The announcement that Commodore Harry Maxwell's plan to fit his sloop Barbara for the Class M racing this Summer may give the owners of the new 'M' boats something to think about. Barbara won the King's Cup in 1927 under her old gaff rig with a club-topsail and big jib that sent her fanning along astonishingly in the all-day drift. Several of the 50s carry jib-headed mainsail rigs, but with their masts stepped as when they were gaff-rigged. Barbara, however, is to be more radically altered. Her mast is being moved aft and raked somewhat more, and her rig, designed by Sherman Hoyt, is patterned after that of Clifford Mallory's successful 12-meter Tycoon of last year. ..." (Source: Anon. "Yacht Yards South of Boston Busy With New Work And Fitting Out. ... New Rig for 50, Barbara." Boston Globe, May 5, 1929, p. A63.)

"Commodore Henry L. Maxwell's sloop Barbara has been rerigged, having the gaff rig changed to Marconi. The Barbara was formerly owned by Isaac B. Merriman of Providence and was designed by Herreshoff in 1913. Merriman won the Astor Cup with her in 1925." (Source: Cormack, Shannon. "Maxwell's Barbara Rerigged." New York Times, May 5, 1929, p. 168.)

"... Three of the 'Fifties,' built by Herreshoff in 1913, are coming out with new jib-headed rigs and auxiliary motors to sail as a one-design class in the Y.R.A. championship events. The boats are Ibis [#715s ex-Grayling], recently bought by Carroll B. Alker from Clinton H. Crane; Barbara [#717s], Henry G. Taylor; and Spartan [#712s], Herbert Hanan. Ibis has been out of commission for several years but Spartan and Barbara raced either in the 'M' or handicap classes on the Sound last summer under Marconi rigs that had displaced their old gaff-headed sail plans. ..." (Anon. [Title?] Yachting, 1936, vol. 59-60, [p. 129?].)

"In their heyday the 72' sloops were the fastest racing yachts of their time. Between 1913 and 1928, the New York 50s captured all the principal yachting trophies and it was only with the advent of the 12-meters in 1928 that the New York 50s relinquished their brilliant claims to fame.
Proving that a thing of beauty is a joy forever might be difficult, however, if one considers the fate of [#714s] PLEIONE at Mystic Seaport and more recently BARBARA at Noank Shipyard. There was little joy on board BARBARA several days ago after her neophyte owners had struck a reef off Watch Hill on a shakedown trip from Scituate, Mass., to New Rochelle.
The integrated co-owners had just purchased the old sloop from Sandpaper, Inc., in Scituate for something around $10,000 with the apparent intent of putting her back together this year and perhaps chartering her next year. The Brooklyn natives had an early brush with fate for the steering mechanism was rendered inoperative 1 after hitting the reef. J
With little experience in coping with such problems, the crew managed nevertheless to get a tow into Noank Shipyard. BARBARA remained for several days off the main dock, an object of sympathetic scrutiny and eventually temporary repair to the rudder. A diver ascertained the damage and effected repairs by straightening the rudder and installing an auxiliary sweep. This enabled BARBARA to leave under power for New Rochelle with her leather-jacketed crew once again in charge. An interested onlooker while BARBARA was in port was Ed Maxwell, of Noank, whose father Henry L. Maxwell had owned BARBARA as a gaff-rigged racing sloop from 1927-1929.
While Vice Commodore of the Larchmont Yacht Club, Henry Maxwell bought BARBARA from Harry Payne Whitney in 1927. This yacht was one of nine New York 50s designed by Herreshoff to the New York Yacht Club 50-Foot Class rule in 1913. (Carrying 2,900 square feet of sail and weighing approximately 30 tons, the 72-foot BARBARA is 50 feet on the water with a 14 1/2 foot beam and a 9 foot draft.)
Maxwell's shining hour at BARBARA's helm came in 1928 when in one of the races during the New York Yacht Club cruise, he beat handily two J-boats, VANITY and. RESOLUTE, for the King's Cup trophy.
In 1929 Maxwell sold her to Chubb and Sons in New York, whereupon her rig was changed from gaff to marconi and she was renamed VICTORIA. Late in the 40's she was sold to a firm in Scituate (Sandpaper, Inc.) and used as a company vehicle for entertaining visiting firemen. The owners gave her back her original name of BARBARA, which she retains today." (Source: Anderson, Anne. "72-Foot Sloops." New London Day, May 16, 1969, p. ?)

"OCEAN CITY, Md. (AP) --- A 72-foot ketch escorted from 5 miles out in the Atlantic was undergoing engine repairs Friday, the Coast Guard said. The ketch Barbara was bound from New York to Ft. Lauderdale and then to the Bahamas with six aboard when it radioed for help Thursday. The Coast Guard went to the stricken vessel's aide and escorted it to port. Chief William Bowen, officer in charge of the Coast Guard station here, said the boat had a clogged fuel line, a ripped sail and was partially disabled. Seas at the time were two to three feet high and the vessel took on water over the bow. Captain of the Barbara was listed as John Odato of New York City. None of the six men aboard were injured." (Source: Anon. "Escorted To Ocean City." The Morning Herald, Hagerstown, MD, November 15, 1969, p. 2.)

"Great Sailing Weekends --- Famous 72' yacht Barbara sails NY --- Block Island, Newport Cape. Good food, congenial shipmates. Expert instruction included. Also relaxing Day --- Moonlight sails mid-town, vacation cruises Mary E. 53' windjammer -Special: July 3rd-6th, $157.50 - SEVEN SEAS SAILING CLUB, Box 36, Bronx 10464. (212) 885-2393; JU 2-8800. [Note: Barbara was owned at the time by the famous jazz vibraphonist Teddy Charles (born Theodore Cohen who was also a serial big boat owner and successful charter captain. Barbara was advertised for charter between 1974 and 1975.]" (Source: Seven Seas Sailing Club. [Classified Advertisement.] New York Magazine, June 23, 1975, p. 87.)

"I was fortunate enough to spend many, many hours sailing on Barbara in the early 70’s. She was rigged as a ketch, and handled with great ease. She was both stately and sprightly, if you can imagine that blend. Rather like a beautiful woman in her mid-30’s.
At that time she was owned by the jazz musician Ted Charles (Ted Cohen), who quite frankly couldn’t afford to maintain her. She was sold circa 1973 - 1974 to a consortium in California.
I last saw Barbara in Consolidated on City Island, where she was being refitted. The interior had been removed, and the inside of the hull had been red leaded. What a magnificent sight it was! The man working on her at the time was more or less kind to me, and told me of the consortium and their intention to berth Barbara on the West Coast and to charter her. I wished him well --- with sadness.
A year or so later I heard, without confirmation, that Barbara had been lost in the Bahamas on her transit to California.
A few years ago I spoke briefly with Halsey Herreschoff, and asked him if he knew anything of the fate of Barbara. He did not." (Source: Saxon, Ronald. Post at classicsailboats.org, May 14, 2020. http://classicsailboats.org/869/, retrieved February 24, 2021.)

"At 72 feet overall, the New York 50s were among the largest Herreshoff sailing hulls to be built upside down and entirely of wood construction. They were built in a kind of production line. While one hull was being planked, the previous one, turned upright, was having its interior and deck installed. This same two-boat cycle was repeated all during the winter and spring of 1912-1913, until the last of the nine New York 50s slid overboard from the North Construction Shop's launching ways.
Like all but the smallest Herreshoff-built wood-hulled racing yachts, the New York 50s were double-planked and diagonally strapped with metal, which gave them unusual strength for their weight. ..." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 103.)

"N/A"

"[Item Description:] HH.5.02148 (029-054). Blueprint preliminary general arrangement plan with plan view and inboard profile titled 'Sloop. WL about 50ft. Scale 3/8in = 1ft. Sept[ember] 16 - 1912'. Marked in pencil 'Standard Arrangement for 50ft Class [New York 50 class: #711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s and #721s]'." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Blueprint. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0143. WRDT08, Folder 12, formerly MRDE02. 1912-09-16.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections with weight calculations titled '50 w.l. Sloops. Measured at 51.5[t] LWL (LWL is 2 1/2 inches above the designed w.l. of 50!). Sept 22, 1912. From finished model. Nos. 711-12-13-14-15-16-17-20&21 [#711s VENTURA, #712s SPARTAN, #713s IROQUOIS II, #714s PLEIONE, #715s GRAYLING, #716s SAMURI, #717s BARBARA, #720s ACUSHLA, #721s CAROLINA II]'." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_00890. Folder [no #]. 1912-09-22.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections with weight calculations titled '#711 & class. 50 w.l. Sloops. Referred to designed w.l. of 50ft. Scale 1/2in. From finished model. Nos. 711-12-13-14-15-16-17 [#711s VENTURA, #712s SPARTAN, #713s IROQUOIS II, #714s PLEIONE, #715s GRAYLING, #716s SAMURI, #717s BARBARA, #720s ACUSHLA, #721s CAROLINA II]. Sept 22, 1912'." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_00910. Folder [no #]. 1912-09-22.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph lead sections on partially very creased paper titled 'No 711 & class [#711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s]. Scale 1in & 1/12in. Sept[ember] 24, 1912'. Wth calculations showing required lead of 37410lbs at .576 of 50ft w.l." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Lead Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_03790. Folder [no #]. 1912-09-24.)
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"[Item Description:] Blueprint table titled 'Program - Construction No. 711 Class. 1912-1913' with a detailed building time schedule for #711s VENTURA, #712s SPARTAN, #713s IROQUOIS II, #714s PLEIONE, #715s GRAYLING, #716s SAMURI, #717s BARBARA with planned dates and durations for 'Begin Work on Keel and Foundation', 'Setup Frames and Lead Mould', 'Begin Planking and Cast Lead', 'Turn Over and Set on Lead', 'Launch', 'Begin to Rig' and 'Delivery'. Including some penciled-in dates. (Note that actual building times turned out to be substantially shorter than initially envisioned.) Undated, between September 13, 1912 when these boats were contracted for and October 14, 1912, the first date on this plan." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Blueprint Table. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE03_03440. Folder [no #]. No date (between 1912-09-13 and 1912-10-14).)
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"[Item Description:] Sailing master request for new 50ft class [for #717s BARBARA]." (Source: Whitney, Harry Payne. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_05370. Correspondence, Folder 19, formerly 135. 1912-12-26.)
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"[Item Description:] HMCo Plan 76-111. Photostat construction plan with inboard profile, plan view, sections and scantlings titled '72ft overall, 50ft w.l., 14ft 6in beam, 9ft 9in br' for the NY50 class (#711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s)." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Photostat Construction Plan. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0164. WRDT08, Folder 15, formerly MRDE02. 1913-04-21.)
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"[Item Description:] [Telegram?] note 'expect to arrive in Bristol Sunday morning staying Monday' [planning to measure #717s BARBARA during which activity he would suffer a stroke (see HCR)]." (Source: Hallock, William. Correspondence (telegram notice) to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_67620. Measuring and Measurement Rules (Box 1), Folder B1F01, formerly MRDE15. 1913-05-02.)
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"[Item Transcription:] Wed 23.
Dear Capt Nat.
I have seen Bob Emmons and have arranged for you to sail on BABARA [sic, i.e. #717s BARBARA] today and will see [George] Baker and arrange for you to sail on VENTURA [#711s] to-morrow. Emmons will wisk[?] you up so keep an eye out for him. I regret I cannot be at Larchmont before Friday or Sat on account of my eyes that are none too good, this is a disappointment as I should liked to have sailed with you during the week. I will arrange with Harry Maxwell about AVENGER [#666s]. I want to see you before you go back so please to call me up home some night after the race. I hope you have good sport and that we may sail together on Sat.
Sincerely, G A Cormack
am sending this from N.Y. and it will be delivered by Butler [Duncan]'s launch. [No year and month, but NGH]s diary shows this to have been in July 1913 when he sailed at Larchmont on BARBARA on July 23, 1913.]" (Source: Cormack, George A. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_24560. Subject Files, Folder 2, formerly 96-100. (1913-07)-23.)
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"[Item Description:] you wanted special attention paid to Eaton, we gave it to him, at the start today in a strong breeze he got ahead of the gun on the port tack tried to pay off to get back, found he could not as three boats were coming for him on starboard tack, tried to come about too late & messed the whole crowd up & hit #715s GRAYLING, we sent him home at once, #717s BARBARA miscalculated & tried to cover #714s PLEIONE & they came together, the latter's topmast breaking off about four feet from the truck, Muir[?] on Ellis' boat [#713s IROQUOIS II] handled her very well ... & won a good race" (Source: Duncan, W. Butler, Jr. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_43180. Correspondence, Folder 93, formerly 127. (1913 or later)-08-11.)
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"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections with pinpricks and radials titled '711 Class [#711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s]. 50 footers. Oct[ober] 2 1913'." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0392. WRDT04, Folder 34, formerly MRDE08. 1913-10-02.)
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"[Item Description:] have sent order for new mast for #712s SPARTAN as Mr. Whitney did not let me have the one made for #717s BARBARA, hope you will be able to get it out by May 20" (Source: Duncan, W. Butler, Jr. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_43220. Correspondence, Folder 93, formerly 127. 1914-04-21.)
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"[Item Transcription:] Order book with carbon copy duplicates of instructions given by NGH. Relevant contents:
§51: Work Order [For] #711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s. [When wanted] Soon. Plow steel wire (1912-10-05)." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Order Book. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE08_04730. Folder [no #]. 1909-10 to 1914-11.)
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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 ?).)
① ②

"[Item Description:] think you are right as to the size of the halliards & sheet, please send me a set of the blocks next size larger & I will change them, I was out [in #812s Nahma] in a strong breeze last week & the mast stood all right except off the wind, then it went forward a good deal but I do not suppose that spreaders would help this, NY50s raced on Saturday, I was on #721s CAROLINA, we won over #717s BARBARA, what chance has [#667s] AURORA as to saving her time against the NY50s in the big cups?, think the NY50s can give their time to the 40s but have not had a good chance yet" (Source: Duncan, W. Butler, Jr. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_21050. Correspondence, Folder 61. 1916-06-05.)
①

"[Item Description:] wants to sell #717s BARBARA" (Source: Hammond, Paul. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_06950. Correspondence, Folder 24, formerly 210. 1920-11-26.)
① ② ③ ④

"[Item Description:] Seven mimeographed pages with race results of the Cruise of the New York Yacht Club of 1922. Races: Astor Cups off Newport, R.I. on August 2d, 1922. 1st Run Newport to Mattapoisett on August 3, 1922. 2dt Run Mattapoisett to Vineyard Haven on August 4, 1922. 3rd Run Vineyard Haven to Provincetown on August 5, 1922. 4th Run Provincetown to Gloucester on August 7, 1922. 5th Run Gloucester to Marblehead on August 8, 1922. Among the finishers were schooners #719s VAGRANT II, #698s QUEEN MAB ex-VAGRANT I, #663s IROLITA ex-ISTALENA, #827s OHONKARA and #772s MARIETTE, New York 50s #721s CAROLINA, #711s ISTALENA ex-VENTURE, #720s ACUSHLA ex-HARPOON and #717s BARBARA, New York 40s #776s ROWDY, #777s ZILPH, #804s SQUAW, #774s MISTRAL, #779s SALLY ANN ex-JESSICA, #781s PAMPERO and #773s MONSOON ex-MAISIE, New York 30s #629s COUNTESS ex-MAID OF MEUDON, #648s MINX, #632s ALICE ex-TABASCO, #640s BANZAI, #637s ORIOLE and #630s LENA ex-PINTAIL, as well as cutter #586s BUTTERFLY ex-NELLIE." (Source: NYYC (creator). Race Results. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_72340. Measuring and Measurement Rules (Box 2), Folder B2F01, formerly MRDE15. 1922.)
① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦

"[Item Description:] HMCo Plan 74-75. Blueprint detail plan titled 'Quick Working Shackles for Blocks Hal & Double Sheets. Job 1-336. Mentioned vessels include: #711s, #712s, #713s, #714s, #715s, #716s, #717s, #720s, #721s, #773s, #774s, #775s, #776s, #777s, #778s, #779s, #780s, #781s, #782s, #783s, #804s, #891s, #955s, and #983s." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (Newman, H.F.) (creator). Blueprint. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0184. WRDT08, Folder 17, formerly MRDE06. 1923-03-12.)
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"[Item Transcription:] Printed pamphlet titled 'Racing Rules. New York Yacht Club. 1924'. Incl. a printed 'List of yachts, the measurements of which are on file with the Race Committee. July, 1924.
Schooners
D 7 FLYING CLOUD
D 10 IROLITA [#663s ex-ISTALENA]
C 5 MARIETTE [#772s ]
E 14 NOMAD
F 22 NORKA
C 2 OHONKARA [#827s ]
D 8 PRINCESS [#658s ex-IROLITA II]
E 9 QUEEN MAB [#698s ex-VAGRANT I]
E 16 SHAWNA
C 12 SONNICA
C 7 VAGRANT [#719s ]
FF 1 WANDERER IX
D 22 WILDFIRE [#891s ]
Fifty Class
N.Y. 52 ANDIAMO [#716s ex-SAMURI]
N.Y. 55 CAROLINA [#716s ]
N.Y. 53 IROQUOIS II [#721s ]
N.Y. 54 MYSTIC [#715s ex-GRAYLING]
N.Y. 56 SPARTAN [#716s ]
Forty Class
N.Y.Y.C. 8 BANSHEE [#782s ex-PAULINE]
N.Y.Y.C. 2 COCKATOO [#775s ex-DOLLY BOWEN]
N.Y.Y.C. 12 IRIS [#777s ex-ZILPH]
N.Y.Y.C. 6 MISTRAL [#782s ]
N.Y.Y.C. 7 PAMPERO [#775s ]
N.Y.Y.C. 9 ROWDY [#777s ]
N.Y.Y.C. 3 SALLY ANN [#779s ex-JESSICA]
N.Y.Y.C. 10 SHAWARA [#782s ]
THIRTY CLASS
N.Y. 18 ADIOS [#647s ex-ANEMONE]
N.Y. 1 ALERA [#647s ]
N.Y. 7 ALICE [#632s ex-TABASCO]
N.Y. 15 BANZAI [#647s ]
N.Y. 8 CAROLITA [#633s ex-CARLITA]
N.Y. 4 COUNTESS [#629s ex-MAID OF MEUDON]
N.Y. 14 FIJI II [#639s ex-CARA MIA]
N.Y. 5 LENA [#630s ex-PINTAIL]
N.Y. 12 MINX [#638s ex-NEOLA II]
N.Y. 11 ORIOLE [#637s ex-ORIOLE]
N.Y. 13 PHANTOM [#648s ex-MINX]
0 Class
L.O. 1 GEORGIA
L.O. 4 GREY DAWN
L.O. 5 MAISIE
L.O. 3 NIMBUS
Various Classes
N 2 ALICE
N.Y. 58 BARBARA [#717s ] (Aux. Sloop)
P 1 BUTTERFLY [#586s ex-NELLIE]
M 15 LADRONE [#634s ex-SUZETTA III] (Aux. Yawl)
N.Y. 51 REVERY [#720s ex-ACUSHLA] (Aux. Yawl)
M 6 VENTURA [#717s ]
K 3 WINSOME [#717s ] (Aux. Ketch)'.
Of 49 yachts listed (including 11 NY30s, 8 NY40s and 5 NY50s plus 2 NY50s and 1 NY70 out of class) 37 or 75% were designed and built by Herreshoff." (Source: New York Yacht Club (creator). Printed Pamphlet. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE08_01830. Folder [no #]. 1924.)
① ② ③ ④

"[Item Transcription:] Handwritten (in ink) trials booklet titled '1911. Trial Trips and Experiments'. Relevant contents:
§53: #717s BARBARA Trial Run best speed 8.25mph [= 7.17kn] (1924-05-21)." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator) and Herreshoff, A. Sidney deW. (creator). Trials Booklet. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE07_04280. Folder [no #]. 1911-06 to 1926-05.)
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
① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦ ⑧ ⑨

"[Item Description:] [on 'Eleven Thomas Street' stationery, indicating this to have come from George Nichols:] Mr. [Clinton] Crane has sent me a sketch of the [marconi] rig he designed for #715s GRAYLING, rating, staying arrangement, #721s CAROLINA II, with Crane [#715s IBIS ex-GRAYLING], Maxwell [#717s BARBARA], Hanan [#712s SPARTAN] and possibly Ralph Ellis [#713s IROQUOIS II] against me next season I shall have to be careful [incomplete, possibly not completely scanned, part of a group of documents pinned together with George Nichols to NGH letter of October 30, 1926 being the topmost letter]" (Source: Nichols, George. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRRT_200. Unidentif. / Non-Cataloged, Folder MRRT. 1926-10-30.)
①

Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #717s Barbara even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• Kleinhans, Lewis. "New York 40s and 50s." In: Schoettle, Edwin J. Sailing Craft. New York, 1928, p. 229-243. (3,032 kB)
  Document is copyrighted: No known copyright restrictions. Class description and history. New York 50 sailing regulations.
• van der Linde, Claas. [Layered Comparison of Model and Plan to Demonstrate Shortening of New York 50 by Two Feet after the model had been made.] February 25, 2022. (747 kB)
  Document is copyrighted: Yes, used with permission. Copyright holder: Claas van der Linde. Clinton Crane, in his 1952 'Yachting Memories' (p. 102) wrote 'In the New York Fifties [NGH] shortened the stern to bring them inside the amount which the new owners were willing to pay, so that they were never as good looking as they might have been.' This shortening by 24 inches can be seen by overlaying the construction plan with the model which then clearly shows the model's slender stern extending beyond the boat's plan profile. At HMCo vessel profiles for a plan were usually created by simply placing the model onto the plan and then tracing a pencil around the model's outline. It appears that the extended stern on this drawing was then simply erased --- hence the spot of lighter color at the transom. This is a layered document which allows clicking on and off overlaid transparent layers to reveal different parts of the image.
• Anon (John F. A. Davis). [#717s Barbara (Charter?) Brochure.] No place, no date (1970s?). (1,554 kB)
  Document is copyrighted: No known copyright restrictions. Descriptive (charter?) brochure.

• Barbara (HMCo-made index card)
• Barbara (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: Barbara
Type: Cutter
Length: 50'
Owner: Whitney, H. P.

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

• Barbara
• Victoria ex-Barbara
• 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: Barbara
Type: 50' sloop
Owner: Harry Payne Whitney
Year: 1913
Row No.: 74

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: 23
Year: 1912
E/P/S: S
No.: 0717
Name: Barbara
LW: 50'
B: 14' 7"
D: 9' 9"
Rig: Cutter
K: y
Ballast: Lead O.
Amount: 14250.00 [sic, i.e. 14520]
Notes Constr. Record: F. Paine 1923 Maxwell Victoria [written in above Barbara]
Last Name: Whitney
First Name: H. P.

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 NY 8." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. April 29, 2009.)

"Sail number 58 in 1916 with the numeral in black and the initials N.Y.Y.C. in a semi-circle half way around the numerals and above as per the New York Herald of May 17, 1916, p. 13." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. March 11, 2012.)

"In 1927, when all the other NY50s converted to marconi rig, Barbara was the only NY50 which still carried her old gaff rig. Together with the marconi-rigged Andiamo ex-Samuri she raced in Class L that year because her sail area was too large to allow her into Class M like the other NY50s and the newly built Prestige. Nonetheless, she was able to win the King's Cup in Newport that year." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. May 10, 2012.)

"Given a launch schedule of one NY50 every 18 to 20 days, Barbara is estimated to have been launched around Saturday April 4, 1913. NGH was in Bermuda at that time which would explain the lack of a corresponding launching note in his diary." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. May 30, 2014.)

"Built in 163 days (contract to launch; equivalent to $89/day, 459 lbs displacement/day)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 16, 2024.)

"Sail area 3416 sqft 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.)

"Displacement 1169 cubic foot [= 74,816 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.)

"Displacement is about 74,000 lb. of which about 35,500 lb. is the lead ballast." (Source: McClave, Ed. "The Restoration of the HMCo 'New York Fifty' Spartan." In: Herreshoff Marine Museum (Publisher). Proceedings. The Classic Yacht Symposium 2010. Bristol, R.I. 2010, p. 149-158.)

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