HMCo #727s Dolphin

S00727_Dolphin_by_Kathy_Bray.gif

Particulars

Construction_Record_Title.jpgName: Dolphin
Type: Newport 29
Designed by: NGH
Contract: 1913-11-27
Delivered: 1914-6-15
Construction: Wood
LOA: 36' 5" (11.10m)
LWL: 29' 0" (8.84m)
Beam: 10' 6.5" (3.21m)
Draft: 5' 4" (1.63m)
Rig: Gaff Sloop (Marconi in 1934?)
Sail Area: 728sq ft (67.6sq m)
Displ.: 15,968 lbs (7,243 kg)
Keel: yes
Ballast: Lead outside
Built for: Jennings, Oliver G. [Benjamin Brewster Jennings]
Amount: $3,900.00
Current owner: Private Owner, Oyster Bay, NY (last reported 2022 at age 108)

Note: Particulars are primarily but not exclusively from the HMCo Construction Record. Supplementary information not from the Construction Record appears elsewhere in this record with a complete citation.


Model

Model #714Model number: 714
Model location: H.M.M. Model Room North Wall Right

Vessels from this model:
6 built, modeled by NGH
#718s Alerion III (1913, Extant)
#727s Dolphin (1914, Extant)
#728s Mischief (1914, Extant)
#732s Sadie (1914, Extant)
#737s Comet (1914)
#999s Paddy (1926, Extant)

Original text on model:
"#718 cb cruiser Scale 1" July 1912 ALERION N G Herreshoff Bermuda
#732 SADIE 6" more overhang forward and 4" wider 1914
#727, 728 & 737 = DOLPHIN, MISCHIEF & COMET 1914 [Newport 29 Class]
Scale 3/4" Over hangs increased and breadth deck increased 5". Keel." (Source: Original handwritten annotation on model. Undated.)

Model Description:
"21'9" lwl Alerion (III) and Sadie, keel/centerboard cabin sloops of 1913. Also, with change of scale and full keel, the 29' lwl Dolphin, Mischief, and Comet, Newport 29-class sloops of 1914. A 4th boat of the class originally named Paddy (now called Teaser) was launched in 1926. Three of the four still sail and race successfully, Comet having been lost in the Hurricane of 1938. This model also served as the basis for the 31' 6" lwl Fishers Island 31-class sloops of which thirteen were built between 1927 and 1930. Torch, beautifully restored and on display in the Hall of Boats represents this latter class at the Herreshoff Marine Museum." (Source: Bray, Maynard. 2004.)

Related model(s):
Model XA2-1_05 by ASdeWH and NGH (1926?); sail, 14 built from
Fishers Island Aux. Sloop


Note: Vessels that appear in the records as not built, a cancelled contract, a study model, or as a model sailboat are listed but not counted in the list of vessels built from a model.


Drawings

Main drawing Dwg 076-114 (HH.5.05565) Explore all drawings relating to this boat.

List of drawings:
   Drawings believed to have been first drawn for, or being first referenced to
   HMCo #727s Dolphin are listed in bold.
   Click on Dwg number for preview, on HH number to see at M.I.T. Museum.
  1. Dwg 079-087 (HH.5.05896); Chainplates for # 560 to 567 (1901-09-18)
  2. Dwg 093-048 (HH.5.07653); Cabin Table of Mahogany (1903-06-01)
  3. Dwg 110-033 (HH.5.08998); Details for # 626 Class (1904-12-24)
  4. Dwg 068-071 (HH.5.04877): Steering Gear # 255 (1906-07-22)
  5. Dwg 029-063 (HH.5.02157); General Arrangement > Newport 29' Cruising Class, 36' O.A., 29' W.L., 10'-4" Beam, 5'-0" Draft (1914-01-19)
  6. Dwg 128-046 (HH.5.10160): Sails > Sails for Nos. 727, 728, 737 (1914-01-28)
  7. Dwg 130-138 (HH.5.10449); Sails > # 727, 728 Dolphin and Mischief (1914-01-28)
  8. Dwg 029-064 (HH.5.02158); General Arrangement > Newport 29' Cruising Class (1914-02-09)
  9. Dwg 076-114 (HH.5.05565); Construction Dwg > Newport 29 ft. Cruising Class (1914-02-25 ?)
  10. Dwg 081-105 (HH.5.06196): Spars for # 727 - # 728 (1914-03-05)
  11. Dwg 064-092 (HH.5.04567): Rudder, Stock, and Fittings (1914-04-14)
  12. Dwg 068-099 (HH.5.04907): Steering Quadrant and Pinion for 1 3/8" Rudder Stock (1914-05-05)
  13. Dwg 068-100 (HH.5.04908): Steering Stand for 3 1/8" Compass Card (1914-05-15)
  14. Dwg 076-152 (HH.5.05590); General Arrangement > Newport 29 Footer Cruising Class, 36'-9" O.A., 29'-3" W.L., 10'-6" Beam, 5'-4" Draft (1926-04-26)
  15. Dwg 068-100 (HH.5.04909): Steering Stand (1936-03-13)
Source: Francis Russell Hart Nautical Collections, MIT Museum, Cambridge, Mass. Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection. Together with: Hasselbalch, Kurt with Frances Overcash and Angela Reddin. Guide to The Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection. Francis Russell Hart Nautical Collections, MIT Museum, Cambridge, Mass., 1997. Together with: Numerous additions and corrections by Claas van der Linde.
Note: The Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection is copyrighted by the Francis Russell Hart Nautical Collections of the MIT Museum in Cambridge, Mass. Permission to incorporate information from it in the Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné is gratefully acknowledged. The use of this information is permitted solely for research purposes. No part of it is to be published in any form whatsoever.

Documents

Nathanael G. Herreshoff

"[1914-01-22] Thu 22: Very fine & cold. NW & clear. ... Have orders for 2 29'wl cruising knockabouts a B class & power launch. [Note: The two 29' wl cruising knockabouts are references to the Newport 29s #727s Dolphin and #728s Mischief. Note however, that the Construction Record lists these two boats as having been contracted for much earlier: on November 27, 1913. The B class might be a reference to a B class schooner which would have been a big schooner the size of #657s Queen or #706s Elena. No such schooner was built in 1914. Likewise, except for the already mentioned power launch #295p for the steam yacht Tarantula no power launch seems to have been contracted for until August 1914.]
[1914-06-14] Sun 14: Very fine [with] l[igh]t [?]ain [in] AM. Fresh SSE [wind in] PM. Off trying #733 [Mink], Buzzards Bay 25' and 29' cruisers [Newport 29s #727s Dolphin and #728s Mischief]. ...
[1914-06-15] Mon 15: Fine, The 2 29' cruisers [#727s Dolphin and #728s Mischief] were delivered today." (Source: Herreshoff, Nathanael G. Diary, 1914. Manuscript (excerpts). Diary access courtesy of Halsey C. Herreshoff.)

Other Herreshoff Family

"... The Newport 29 Class boats are scaled up by the proportion 4/3 from the ALERION [#718s] size. Since that long ago time, there has been speculation as to whether Npt. 29s are ALERIONS or SADIES [#732s]. Both aficionados and builders of copies and sailors have adamantly stated one way or the other; none of them are entirely correct. Notes in pencil on the back of my original ALERION design model and reference to Captain Nat’s design notes solve the riddle (with thanks to John Palmieri). The actual fact is that Capt. Nat did apply the scale of 16in. to the foot for the #727 Class instead of 12in. to the foot, making the Newport 29 boats 4/3 larger than the original ALERION III underbody. He again altered the ALERION lines by bow extension, more forward flair, plus greater on-deck beam amidships and aft. His design notes reveal that these changes were along the lines of the thinking for the earlier SADIE changes but not necessarily scaled exactly the same as for SADIE. Of course, the geometry of the original keel-centerboard boats was modified to a deeper full keel without centerboard and with completely outside low ballast. Also Capt. Nat shortened the stern overhangs of the four Newport 29 boats. It is unclear why he did that, but the result seems not to have harmed the dynamic racing successes of those boats. ..." (Source: Herreshoff, Halsey C. "The 2014 CYS Commemorates the Great Herreshoff year of 1914." In: Herreshoff Marine Museum (publ.). Proceedings. The 6th Classic Yacht Symposium. May 2- 3, 2014. Bristol, RI, 2014, p. 5.)

Other Contemporary Text Source(s)

"... Herreshoff is very busy at present, for in addition to the Vanderbilt syndicate sloop [#725s Resolute], the Tod schooner [#722s Katoura], and a number of power boats, two 31-raters for New York yachtsmen are in frame. These boats are being constructed, one at either end of the cup sloop. ... [The two 31-raters are apparently the two Newport 29 sloops #727s Dolphin and #728s Mischief.]" (Source: Anon. "Notes from the Week's Log." Boston Globe, February 8, 1914, p. 49.)

"... The two rating sloops building at Herreshoff's, one at either end of the Vanderbilt America Cup sloop, are nearly completed. One is to be launched within the week and the other will follow a few days later ..." (Source: Anon. "Notes from the Week's Log." Boston Globe, March 29, 1914, p. 63.)

"Herreshoff is building a new class of boats, to be known as the Newport Cruising Class. They are to be comfortable little cruisers of about 27 feet water line with a sail area of about 600 [?] square feet to carry about 700 pounds of lead and have a draft of five feet, which will give good head room in the cabin and a safe, comfortable boat. They will be a trifle under the Newport Thirties [#463s Asahi et al] and a trifle over the Jamestown Twenty Fives [#688s Senta and #689s Hyepus] both from Herreshoffs. One [#728s Mischief] of the boats is for Mr. H. D. Aunchincloss Jr and one [#727s Dolphin] for Mr. Benjamin Brewster Jennings. They should be fine little cruisers and have speed enough to go into class racing. It is expected that there will be others when these are seen by those who like a small but safe and comfortable cruiser, with some speed." (Source: Anon. "Newport Cruising Class. Herreshoff Building New Boats for Messrs. Aunchincloss and Jennings." The Newport Daily News, June 3, 1914, p. 11.)

"The two new Herreshoff boats of the Newport special cruising class arrived this morning from Bristol. They had a fair wind down and were reported to have shown up well, but when they reached here every one agreed they were the homeliest things that ever came out of Herreshoff's yard. Still, they are built for comfortable cruisers and 'handsome is that handsome does.' Anchored close by yawl Gannet [#409s], 24 years old, they do not look as trim as she does. They have a flaring bow and stern; the bow seems like a pig nose compared with the bow of the Gannet, and the stern is very short, with what would be called a counterstern behind and above the little overhand.
It is evident that in them Herreshoff is working out some new ideas. The mast is well aft, giving a large foresail. There is no bowsprit and the boom is only just aft of the taffrail. They are not as high out of water as the Jamestown 25-footers [#688s Senta and #689s Hyepus], nor as good-looking. They are 27 feet long, and are built for Mr. Auchincloss and Mr. Jennings. The latter is not expected here before the middle of July, so that a meeting between the boats cannot be looked for before then. Mr. Auchincloss will probably try his boat out against the Jamestown boats soon." (Source: Anon. "Not Good-Looking. Two New Herreshoff Boats of Newport Class Arrive from Bristol." Newport Daily News, June 16, 1914, p. 1.)

"... The Conanicut Yacht Club is holding its regular weekly races Friday afternoons, and the coming Friday [August 7, 1914] it is expeceted the Thelema, Mr. Charles Wharton's 21-footer, will be in racing against the Quakeress and Amarita. ... It is possible, also, that the two Newport Herreshoff specials [#728s Mischief and #727s Dolphin], owned by Messrs. Auchincloss and Jennings, will take part at this race. A third one of this class [#737s Comet] has been completed at Herreshoff's for young Cornelius Vanderbilt, and Captain George Barr, one of the famous family, has charge. The third craft is one frame, 12 inches, longer aft than the others and this gives her a finer look." (Source: Anon. "Jamestown. Annual Water Sports to Take Place on the Morning of August 20." Newport Daily News, August 5, 1914, p. 8.)

"... Arthur P. Brayton of Fall River, one of the best known of amateur yachtsmen in Narragansett Bay waters, has purchased the Dolphin, formerly owned by Oliver G. Jennings, New York Yacht Club, and will race her this season among the class A. sloops. Dolphin, a Herreshoff designed and built craft, is 37 feet over all, 29 feet on the water line, with an extreme beam of 10 feet, 4 inches, and 5 feet draft. ..." (Source: Anon. "Yachting Notes." New York Times, May 14, 1916, p. 18.)

"... Comet [#737s], the 29-foot waterline Herreshoff knockabout, sister boat to the Dolphin [#727s], recently purchased by Arthur Adams, which was under charter to Mr Adams all of last season, won the race of the second division of the handicap class in the regatta of the Port Washington Yacht Club, Saturday, July 8 [1922], sailed hy her owner, Cornelius Vanderbilt Jr. ..." (Source: Anon. "Notes From The Week's Log." Boston Globe, July 16, 1922, p. 60.)

Maynard Bray

"The Newport 29-footers have occasionally been hailed as the best all-around design ever created by NGH or any other designer; certainly it is one of the most beautiful. Their reputation for speed comes largely from the hundreds of races won by Dolphin [#727s], the first boat of the class, and a boat that seems even today to be unbeatable in any kind of competition; she has proven herself a winner over the many decades she's been campaigned by the Lockwood family. Although Mischief [#728s] has not sailed as many races, she too has proven to be a formidable competitor. As of this writing, both Dolphin and Mischief still sail and have long carried Marconi rigs.
Comet [#737s] was the third boat of this class that was built for the 1914 sailing season, and she was stretched out aft about 7 inches for a less abrupt ending at the transom. (Comet was lost in the hurricane of 1938.) The Herreshoff Mfg. Co. built a fourth Newport 29-footer in 1926, Paddy [#999s], also with the added length of Comet; as of this writing, she is still going strong in Cape Cod waters as Tiana.
The Newport 29s stand out as cruisers and daysailers as well as racers. They are just big enough for four berths, a galley, and an enclosed toilet room. Under the self-bailing cockpit there is space for an auxiliary engine. The rig is small enough to be easily handled, and the hulls are seakindly and of moderate draft --- a far cry indeed from the Herreshoff Mfg. Co. one-designs of 1897 with nearly the same name. Those boats, the Newport 30s ..., were low-sided, high-strung fin-keelers that were strictly for 'round-the-buoy racing.
One might think that NGH worked especially hard to create such an outstanding design as the Newport 29-footers, but that was apparently not the case at all. He simply used the half model he'd made for the building of his own Alerion and changed its scale so the new design would be about a third larger than the old, then added a deeper ballast keel for sufficient lateral plane without a centerboard. (He also worked minor alterations in bow profile and beam that were incorporated into Alerion's near-sister Sadie [#732s].) One can't help speculating how many more of these magnificent designs NGH would have come up with had he lived into the family racer/ cruiser era of the last half-century, and been able to concentrate on that type." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 82.)

Archival Documents

"N/A"

"[Item Description:] Penciled note with calculations, comparing ratings and time allowances for PUCK [#465s] and 29 foot Newport Class [#727s, #728s, #737s]." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Penciled Calculations. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE03_03570. Folder [no #]. No date (1914 or later).)


"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph lead sections titled 'Nos. 727 [#727s DOLPHIN] & 728 [#728s MISCHIEF]. Scale 1 1/2in & 1/4 size'. With calculations and note 'Required 7100lbs with c.g. at .549 of w.l. ...' and concluding with note 'Result. 7160lbs, with c.g. [at] 19.2 frame = .555 of w.l.' and further related calculatons and note 'found to be incorrect Feb[ruary] 18, 1914 ... 5400lbs approx. correct result' and note 'Lead changed as dotted. Results --- 9.96cuft or 7060lbs. Position of c.g. .13ft aft of # 19'." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Lead Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_08230. Folder [no #]. No date (1914 ?).)


"[Item Transcription:] Would you please to let me know the cost of the thirty footers [Newport 29s #727s DOLPHIN and #728s MISCHIEF] you are building for Jennings, also when a new boat [#737s COMET] could be delivered, if ordered. I practically have the order so write for details. This boat will be for Commodore Vanderbilt's son, Nealy.
Sincerely, ...
[PS:] Have the boats fair cabin accomodations. G.A.C. [Incl NGH reply note:] Ans[wered] 14th [of April]. Also letter for office ($4200. Del[ivery] July 15.)" (Source: Cormack, George A. Letter to N.G. Herreshoff. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MR_26030. Subject Files, Folder 5, formerly 96-100. 1914-04-13.)


"[Item Description:] Ink on linen midship section showing cabin height (6ft 0in) and folding berths of an unnamed Newport 29 [#727s DOLPHIN, #728s MISCHIEF]. Marked in lower right corner '30 Pine St., New York' [which in 1934 was the address of the banking house of Roosevelt and Sons with among others Philip J. Roosevelt and Emlen Roosevelt]." (Source: Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Acc. 2004.0001.0244. Inked Drawing. WRDT04, Folder 23, formerly MRDE08. No date (1914 or later).)


"[Item Description:] Penciled pantograph hull sections titled 'Nos. 727 & 728 [#727s DOLPHIN & #728s MISCHIEF]. June 25, 1914. Scale 3/4. ALERION's (719 [sic, i.e. #718s] model changed & 1in deeper in water. Q.b.l. 26ft 3in. Length w.l. 29ft 5in'. Weight calculations show a total of 249.5cuft or 15910lbs. (These sections were drawn 10 days after DOLPHIN & MISCHIEF had been delivered.)" (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Pantograph Hull Sections. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE04_00710. Folder [no #]. 1914-06-25.)


"[Item Transcription:] Order book with carbon copy duplicates of instructions given by NGH. Relevant contents:
§75: Work Order [For] #727s, #728s. [When wanted] Soon. Rigging [3 pages] (1914-01-28)
§78: Work Order [For] #727s, #728s. [When wanted] Soon. Blocks (1914-01-29)." (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.)



"[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 ?).)


"[Item Transcription:] [Penciled note:] Jan 1923. Enlargement of 29 footer 729 [sic i.e. #727s DOLPHIN] for C. H. Merriman Jr.
Increase as 8 to 9 (original increased 3 to 4) making increase from ALERION [#718s] 2 to 3 or measured with an 18in rule representing a foot.
With same modifications as made in 729 class [sic, i.e 727 class] size w[ou]ld be as follows. [followed by data for LOA, LWL, breadth, draft, depth, freeboard, displacement, sail area, and ballast. Note that dimensions for Newport 29 class differ slightly from those in construction record. On verso of dividend chck note from Manville Company dated January 1, 1923.]" (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Penciled Calculations. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE03_03530. Folder [no #]. No date (after 1923-01-23).)


"[Item Description:] Handwritten (in ink and pencil) comparison table giving o.a.L, l.w.l, beam, beam at waterline, beam 1/10b above waterline, draft, depth at various positions, outside lead, freeboard at stem head and other positions, displacement to LWL, frame space (2.2*(D)^1/3)^.9 and other factors (I, II, III, IV), keel thick, stem sided, transverse thick, timbers, plankfloors, lead bolts, planking, diag. straps, clamps, deckbeams, deck, belt frames, rudder stock for the following boats #744 Class (Buzzards Bay Boys Boats 1914), #788 Class (Fish Class 1916), #679 DELIGHT (1908), #699 BIBELOT (1910), #828 Class S (1920), #874 CYGNET (6 meter 1922), #718 ALERION (1912 Centreboard), #932 GAME COCK (R class 1925), #727 Class (Newport 29s COMET 1914), #892 GRAYLING (Q Class 1923), #708 CORINTHIAN (P Class 1911), #773 Class (NYYC 40s 1916), #867 VENTURA (1921 Centreboard), #711 Class (NYYC 50s 1913), #625 DORIS (1905). Undated, 1925 or later given the mention of #932 GAMECOCK. Probably 1927 in preparation for NGH's Rules for Wooden Yachts." (Source: Herreshoff, N.G. (creator). Handwritten Table. Halsey C. Herreshoff Collection at the Herreshoff Marine Museum Item MRDE02_06960. Folder [no #]. No date (1927 ??).)


Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #727s Dolphin even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

Further Reading

Images

Registers

1914 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#802)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur P. Brayton; Port: Fall River, Mass.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig K[eel], TC [Trunk Cabin], Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 29-0; Extr. Beam 10-4; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]17; Sail Area 727
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1920 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#777)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: W. Barklie Henry; Port: Philadelphia
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig K[eel], TC [Trunk Cabin], Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 29-0; Extr. Beam 10-4; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]17; Sail Area 727
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1923 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#761)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur Adams; Port: Boston
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig K[eel], TC [Trunk Cabin], Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 29-0; Extr. Beam 10-4; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]17; Sail Area 727
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1925 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#819)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur Adams; Port: Cohasset, Mass.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig K[eel], TC [Trunk Cabin], Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 29-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]17; Sail Area 727
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1930 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1153)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur Adams; Port: Cohasset, Mass.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-5; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]17; Sail Area 727
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1935 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1298)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur Adams; Port: Cohasset, Mass.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-5; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker R&L [Ratsey&Lapthorn New York]; Sails made in [19]34; Sail Area 685
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1940 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1566)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Arthur Adams; Port: Cohasset, Mass.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-0; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Ratsey; Sails made in [19]34; Sail Area 685
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914

1947 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1467)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: M. H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Ratsey; Sails made in [19]39; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 3/4 x 4. 1944; Maker Universal
Note: Power inst. 1944

1950 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1667)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: M. H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, N.Y.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Ratsey; Sails made in [19]48; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 7/8 x 3 1/2. 1944; Maker Gray
Note: Power inst. 1944

1955 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1840)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: M. H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Reiser; Sails made in [19]51; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 1/4 x 3 1/8. 1955; Maker Brennan

1960 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#2019)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: M. H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker HR&R; Sails made in [19]59; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 1/4 x 3 1/8. 1955; Maker Brennan
Note: Power Inst[alled] 1944

1967 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#2390)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Mary H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker HR&R; Sails made in [19]63; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 9/16 x 3 1/8. 1966; Maker Universal
Note: N-29/1

1970 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#2528)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Mary H. Lockwood. W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig F [Fin], TC [Trunk Cabin], Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Hood; Sails made in [19]68; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Eng. 4 Cyc. 4 Cyl. 2 9/16 x 3 1/8. 1966. Inst. 1967. 18 HP.; Maker Universal
Note: Sail no. N-29/1

1975 Lloyd's Register of American Yachts (#1952)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Mary H. & W. B. Lockwood; Port: New Suffolk, Conn.
Building Material Wood; Type & Rig Aux Slp
LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-4
Sailmaker Hood; Sails made in [19]68; Sail Area 687
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N. G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol, R.I.; Built when 1914
Engine Gas Engine 4 Cy. [19]73.18hp.; Maker Universal
Note: Sail no. 4717. I.O.R. 29.2'

1999-2000 Register of Wooden Boats (#123.7)
Name: Dolphin
Owner: John H. & Robin Lockwood (North Dr., Mattituck, NY 11952); Club(s): Shelter Island YC; Port: Shelter Island, NY
Official no. NY 2506 AM ; Type & Rig Newport 29, Keel sloop
Lbs Gross 18000; LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-7
Sail Area 632
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N.G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol RI; Built when 1914
Engine (1) Gasoline; Maker Univ. Atomic-4
Note: Sail No. 4717

2007 WoodenBoat Register
Name: Dolphin
Owner: Bryan H. Lawrence; Port of Registry: New York, NY
Official no. NY 2506 AM ; Type & Rig Newport 29, Keel sloop
Lbs Gross 18000; LOA 35-6; LWL 30-0; Extr. Beam 10-6; Draught 5-7
Sail Area 632
Builder Herreshoff Mfg. Co.; Designer N.G. Herreshoff; Built where Bristol RI; Built when 1914
Engine Gasoline, (1); Maker Univ. Atomic-4
Note: Sail No. 4717

Source: Various Yacht Lists and Registers. For complete biographical information see the Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné under Data Sources. Note that this section shows only snapshots in time and should not be considered a provenance, although it can help creating one.

Supplement

From the 1920 and earlier HMCo Index Cards at the MIT Museum
  • 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.
From the 1931 HMCo-published Owner's List

Name: Dolphin
Type: J & M
Length: 36'
Owner: Jennings, O. G.

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

From the 1930s L. Francis Herreshoff Index Cards at the Herreshoff Marine Museum
  • 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.
From the 1953 HMCo Owner's List by L. Francis Herreshoff

Name: Dolphin
Type: 29' sloop
Owner: O. G. Jennings
Year: 1914
Row No.: 163

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.

From the 2000 (ca.) Transcription of the HMCo Construction Record by Vermilya/Bray

Month: Nov.
Day: 27
Year: 1912 [sic, i.e. 1913]
E/P/S: S
No.: 0727
Name: Dolphin
OA: 36'
LW: 29'
B: 10' 4"
D: 5'
Rig: J & M
K: y
Ballast: Lead O.
Amount: $3,900.00
Last Name: Jennings
First Name: O. G.

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.

Research Note(s)

"The Herreshoff Construction Record lists #727s Dolphin to have been ordered by Oliver G. Jennings and #728s Mischief by his sister E. B. Aunchincloss (born Jennings). The real beneficiaries, however, were their respective sons for the Newport Daily News of June 3, 1914 (p. 11) reported that #727s Dolphin was built for Mr. Benjamin Brewster Jennings and #728s Mischief for Hugh D. Aunchincloss Jr. They were cousins and almost the same age, Benjamin Brewster Jennings having been born in 1898 and Hugh D. Auchincloss Jr. a year earlier in 1897." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. April 8, 2014.)

"LOA 36ft and LWL 29ft as per Construction Record and 37ft and 29.4ft as per 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.)

"Dolphin is known to have converted from gaff to marconi rig in the 1930s. The exact year seems to be 1934 which, according to Lloyd's Register, is when her sail area changed from 727sq ft to 685sq ft and she received new sails from Ratsey&Lapthorn New York." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. June 1, 2014.)

"Trialled on June 14, 1914 and delivered June 15, 1914." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. March 4, 2012.)

"Built in 200 days (contract to delivered; equivalent to $20/day, 80 lbs displacement/day)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. January 16, 2024.)

"Sail area main 569sqft plus jib 159sqft = 728sqft total as per notes on sail plan 130-138." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. April 15, 2014.)

"Sail area 760.5 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 249.5 cu.ft. [= 15,970 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 15970 lb from NGH design notes quoted in Herreshoff, Halsey C. 'The 2014 CYS Commemorates the Great Herreshoff Year of 1914.' In: Herreshoff Marine Museum (publ.). Proceedings. The 6th Classic Yacht Symposium. May 2- 3, 2014. Bristol, RI, 2014, p. 9." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. May 29, 2014.)

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

Note

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Citation: HMCo #727s Dolphin. Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné. https://herreshoff.info/Docs/S00727_Dolphin.htm.