Dr. William Collier will share stories of some of the major classic yacht restorations he has managed over the past 35 years, many with Fairlie Restorations in the 1990s and then through G. L. Watson & Co. beginning in 2001. He will describe the vital role that archives and rigorous historical research play in the restoration process, and how the realization that there is critical need to preserve a dispersed and vanishing historical record of yachting heritage along the Clyde lead to the formation of the Scottish Yachting Archives in 2020. He will also highlight artifacts from the fantastic (and rapidly expanding) SYA holdings, including drawings, tools, models, and ephemera spanning the Golden Age of Yachting to the modern era.

Dr. Collier has made a career of finding lost classics and managing complex and high-profile yacht restorations with meticulous attention to detail. Though he has spent decades dealing with every imaginable challenge in the restoration field, he is an archivist and historian at heart with a deep appreciation for the stories of these yachts and the people who built, sailed, and owned them – and those who rebuild, sail and own them today. Alongside Director Antony Harrison, he is a Managing Director at G. L. Watson, and founder of the Scottish Yachting Archives, a registered nonprofit, both based in Glasgow, Scotland. Dr. Collier is on the organizing committee of the Classic Yacht Symposium, Helsinki, and has served on the selection committee for the America’s Cup Hall of Fame for more than 20 years.