HMCo #1319s [Tech Dinghy]

"N. G. HERRESHOFF 6 WALLEY STREET BRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND April 28 1936. {1936/04/28} Dear Francis, ... I understand the lot of dinghys built for M.I.T. intrests are about finished, and work is rather centered on a cruiser of about 50 ft of Alden's design, and for the present owner of Wildfire, which is now at the dock. ... Your affect - Father." (Source: Mystic Seaport Museum, L. Francis Herreshoff Collection, Box 17, Folder 12: Letter from N. G. Herreshoff to L. F. Herreshoff.)

"Plans for introducing sailing as a recognized student activity at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology were completed today [February 15, 1936] with the signing of a contract for 40 sailing dinghies of new design. The contract has been awarded to the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, builders of some of the most famous yachts, and construction will begin at once at the company's plant at Bristol, R. I. The first of the boats, which are to be called the Tech-Herreshoff Class, is expected to be ready in March.
The plans provide for a boat 12 1/2 feet long with a breadth of five feet. A feature of the design is two mast steps, providing for rigging the dinghies either as catboats or sloops. The boat has overhanging bow and stern and has a beauty of line rarely seen in this type. The ample breadth makes for stability and safety of handling by novices, while at the same time the boats are expected to give a good account of themselves in racing. They are expected to weigh less than 175 pounds, assuring ease in transportation and housing.
Dinghies Donated.
The new dinghies, which were designed in the institute's department of naval architecture, have been donated by alumni and friends of the institute to give students the benefits and pleasure of sailing. ...
Dr. Karl T. Compton, president of the Institute, donated the first boat and appointed a committee to draw specifications for a dinghy suitable for instruction in the fundamentals of sailing as well as for undergraduate racing. This committee was composed of Professor Owen, as chairman, Henry A. Morss and Walter C. Wood." (Source: Anon. "Sailing Is Adopted by Tech As Official Student Activity." Christian Science Monitor, February 15, 1936, p. 11.)

"To the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, Bristol, R. I., builders of America's Cup defenders, goes the honor of building what is probably the first one-design class of boats for intercollegiate racing in the country. Valspar Marine Finishes, made by Valentine & Co., New York, are being used on these beautiful Frostbite-type dinghies designed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for use by its students. Forty-five of these dinghies have recently been completed at Herreshoff's." (Source: Anon. "Valspar Used On Tech-Herreshoff Dinghies." Motor Boating, September 1936, p. 92.)

"12 ft. 6 inch M.I.T. Sailing Dinghy. Designed by Naval Architecture Department of M. I. T., and built by Herreshoff Mfg. Co. of Bristol, Rhode Island in 1936. Lapstreak construction of native cedar, 1/4 inch thick. [Model] Scale: 1 inch = 1 ft.
Length overall = 12 ft. 6 in.
Length L.W.L. (with 2 persons aboard at 150 lbs.) about = 11 ft. 6 in.
Breadth, extreme = 5 ft. 0 in.
Depth at middle of L.W.L. Length = 21 inches
Sail Area = 67 sq. ft.
Displacement, at above flotation = 475 lbs." (Source: Owen, George. "Owen Collection of Half Models." Catalog, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 1939.)

"Herreshoff Mfg. Co. records show that forty of these intercollegiate sailing dinghies were built for a flat fee of $10,000, a unit cost of only $250, or only about half what the similar-sized Amphi-Craft ... sold for. Such are the possibilities of an efficient production line and large-dollar contracts. (Subsequently, five more were built at prices ranging to $325.)
M.I.T. professor George Owen was responsible for the 'Tech' dinghy design, and if the boats appear to be pure Herreshoff creations, there's good reason. Owen was one of NGH's draftsmen in earlier times, before joining the M.I.T. staff and before becoming a well-known designer himself. Rather more elegant than practical, the structural design reflects Owen's background and the Herreshoff Mfg. Co.'s standards. For example, the steam-bent wraparound caps on the centerboard trunks are a distinctive, but elaborate, feature. ..." (Source: Bray, Maynard and Carlton Pinheiro. Herreshoff of Bristol. Brooklin, Maine, 1989, p. 193.)

"[Item Description:] Handwritten notebook titled on outer cover 'Droughting Room. Blue Prints Record' providing a list of drawings with information in columns titled 'Issued To', 'For Job', 'Date', 'Date Returned', '[Date] Destroyed', and 'Remarks'. Vessels mentioned are #1266s BELISARIUS, #1267 FROSTFISH, #395p Owner Launch for St.Y. VIKING, #1265s NITRAMON, #1204s SILVERHEELS, #1233s RAINBOW, #1276s PRIM, #1275s MITENA, #907s PLEASURE, #931s NASSAU, #711s VENTURA, #900s IRIS, #982s WATER LILY, #891s WILDFIRE, #1147s WEETAMOE, #954s MARY ROSE, #880s JOSEPHINE, #788s MANATEE, #1146s ENTERPRISE, #1212s TRONDA, #1282s 12 1/2 for H. V. Reed, #1302s Amphicraft for N. F. Ayer, #1304s Amphicraft for Charles A. Welch, #1286s 12 1/2 for Mr. Maitland Alexander, #1311s Amphicraft for Dr. Seth M. Milliken, #1313s Dinghy for #663s RAMALLAH ex-ISTALENA, #1314s HMCo Yard Skiff, #408s PELICAN, #1315s BRENDA, #396p Power Tender for FONTINALIS, #397p Power Tender for FONTINALIS, #329p CAROLA, #1318s Sailing Dinghy for Henry S. Morgan; #1316s NOVA, #1319s Tech Dinghy, #1317s MANDOO II, #405p Surfboat, #1379s Fish Class for H. M. Lautmann (MERRY HELL), #1385s TINKER TOO, and #1384s AVANTI. 23 pages were used. Undated, the dates range from October 1934 to September 1936." (Source: Herreshoff Manufacturing Co. (creator). Notebook. MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.106. Box HAFH.6.3B, Folder Blue Print Record Book. No date (1934-10 to 1936-09).)
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Note: This list of archival documents contains in an unedited form any and all which mention #1319s [Tech Dinghy] even if just in a cursory way. Permission to digitize, transcribe and display is gratefully acknowledged.

• #1319s and other Tech Dinghy class (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.

Year: 1936
E/P/S: S
No.: 1319
Rig: Dinghy
Notes Constr. Record: 40 for $10,000-(Spec. price)
Last Name: M.I.T.

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.

"HMCo's 'Blue Print Record' (MIT Museum, Hart Nautical Collections, Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection Item HH.6.106. Box HAFH.6.3B, p. 18) suggests that this boat was built by Ernest Alder between February 1936 and August 1936 (when the last blueprint used to build it was returned to the office and destroyed)." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. October 3, 2018.)

"Displacement 150lbs (475lbs with 2 persons aboard) as per Owen, George. 'Owen Collection of Half Models.' Catalog, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 1939." (Source: van der Linde, Claas. September 25, 2014.)

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