WEE WINN is remembered with as great fondness by British yachtsmen and historians as it does for us. Built in 1892, the first year of Herreshoff Manufacturing Company sailboat production, for Miss Winnifred Sutton who took British Half Rater Class honors against all comers winning 21 of 22 races. WEE WINN sailed for many years until condemned to a bonfire but was saved and ultimately sent to the Museum.
Sandy’s team of Museum volunteers restored WEE WINN for display in the Museum. It and JILT are the only examples of Herreshoff’s bulb fin keel design in the Museum’s collection, though more than half the sailboats that left Herreshoff in those early years of sailboat production were fin keel! This type has wonderful stories to tell and were critical to Herreshoff achieving global fame!
Sandy’s presentation will discuss WEE WINN’s restoration as well as the evolution and history of Herreshoff fin keel boats, to include early women pioneers who won acclaim in these and other Herreshoff yachts.
This is the second of Sandy’s presentations covering the three projects his team accomplished. These presentations in chronological order tell story of developments and innovations that ultimately enabled Capt. Nat’s apex predator RELIANCE in 1903. The first lecture last December told the story of the Steam Era and critical foundations of Herreshoff Manufacturing Company. This talk covers the 1890’s, the decade of most intense level of innovation as the Company transitioned from steam to sail. The third presentation in April will discuss RELIANCE, of which the team has been building a 37’ tall exact scale model. Their research and building of this model uncovered unique insights into Herreshoff’s innovation practices, and design, engineering and manufacturing processes and RELIANCE’s roots which reached back to steam and earliest days of Herreshoff sail.
February 16, 2023
In-Person Reception begins at 6 pm
Lecture begins at 7 pm, Eastern
Purchase tickets below:
Virtual Tickets: Members: $10, Non-Members: $15
In-Person Tickets: Members: $15, Non-Members: $20
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