The end of the season at the Charlottetown Yacht Club

Following hard on the end of the sailing season the docks at the Charlottetown Yacht Club have been taken out of the water or moved to a safer location to protect them from the ice movement. Repairs have been carried out and the Club has been gradually “put to bed for the winter.”  The chairs for the old geezers have been taken off the verandah and even the geezers themselves have been moved to winter storage.

The original CYC clubhouse with the verandah closed in for winter prior to the end of activities at the Club.

The process is a time-honoured tradition which goes back to the original clubhouse built just before the Second War. The present clubhouse, built on the site of the original, mirrors the architectural style of the original but is very different.  Few photos exist of the interior of the building but it was much more of a humble structure with boarded walls and exposed studs.

What the photos don’t capture is a very necessary feature of every yacht club at the time – a sail loft.  Before Dacron and other miracle fibers for sails everyone depended on cotton sail cloth – a cheap and dependable canvas which held up well if properly cared for. And proper care meant ensuring that sails were not put away wet which could lead surprisingly quickly to mildew and rot – and sometimes nesting rodents. The sail loft provided a place where sails could be hung before  being packed away.

By the early 1960s when I, as a young lad, first began to hang about the Charlottetown Yacht Club the sail loft was no longer used for sails. Instead, in my memory, it housed a huge collection of vintage copies of “The Rudder” and “Motorboating” dating from the Great War to the late 1930s. They probably had belonged to long-time honourary commodore Mac Irwin. I well remember curling up in the loft on rainy summer days and paging through the photos and plans of the sloops and yawls and speedy runabouts and flush-deck cruisers (not unlike the Restless and Roamer) of the time of yachts past.

It was not long before the sail-loft was turned into the club bar and I suspect that the magazines and old trophies and lots of other souvenirs of the old club were thrown out. One of the few surviving remnants of the old clubhouse can be seen in these photos. The verandah chairs were reputedly built using lumber from shipping boxes coming into Charlottetown wholesalers. And well-built they were, as several of them, having been repainted, repaired and repainted over and over, still serving on the verandah of the present club building.

I don’t remember much else about the old building except for the fireplace, which worked a treat and was probably the only source of heat for the building. As the photo shows the fireplace was constructed of beach cobbles.  At an event at the Pictou Yacht Club I was discussing the clubhouse with a member of the Pictou club. He had fond memories of the old building. In those days before everyone had boats large enough to sleep aboard the club played another role. The finish of the annual Charlottetown-Pictou race alternated between the two clubs and with the prevailing wind the trip to Charlottetown always seemed longer.  After crossing the line on a particularly cold, wet, and long race many of the participants rolled out sleeping bags in front of a warming fire in the Charlottetown and passed the remainder of the evening in reflection and dialogue.

A roaring fire in the old clubhouse clearly showing one of the original verandah chairs

Although the club was the site of many social activities with corn boils, bean suppers, lobster boils and other events (mostly catered by the long-suffering and much-missed “ladies aux”) the photos above mystified me (who are these people and what are they doing?) until I noticed the pumpkins on the fireplace mantel. So this is a timely posting of a long-ago Halloween at the CYC.

 

From New York to Charlottetown – By Canoe

Late in the afternoon of Monday, 24 August 1908 a small craft  moved past Blockhouse Point and across Charlottetown Harbour. Aboard were only two crew members and the vessel carried no cargo. The little boat was the sailing canoe Patsy Green and it had left at 5:30 that morning from Augustine Cove. The passage from there to Charlottetown under clear skies and a light breeze had taken less than eleven hours.  That was an impressive time, even though they were probably able to pass in the shallow waters between St.Peter’s Island and Rice Point. What was more impressive is that the journey had started in New York City, 900 miles to the south.

Aboard the canoe were 36 year old Henry A. Wise Wood and his wife Elizabeth Ogden. They had been canoeing for more than fifteen years but this was their longest journey. Henry was the son of a former mayor of New York City but had made his fortune as the inventor of the high-speed newspaper press and held hundreds of patents. His maritime interests were not limited to canoes and he was a member of the prestigious New York Yacht Club and later became one of the founders of the Cruising Club of America.

In several years of canoeing they had developed a canoe especially fitted for long-distance cruising. The Patsy Green was sixteen feet long, thirty-five inches in beam and she drew about six inches of water when loaded. The canoe was decked much like a kayak with one small cockpit forward for Elizabeth and one at the stern for Henry. Between them was a bulkheaded compartment for camping supplies, provisions and their clothing. Henry boasted that “We are often wet ourselves, but our supplies are dry always.” At the bow was a diminutive mast which could carry two boomed-out sails and was the responsibility of the bow crew. When not in use the mast could be unshipped and strapped to the deck.

The sailing canoe had been popularized in the 1880s by English yachtsman John MacGregor  and his long-distance adventures in his tiny Rob Roy canoe yachts but the English type of sailing canoes were simply small, narrow vessels, usually with a yawl rig. In North America enthusiasts embraced indigenous designs and their vessels were recognizably “indian” canoes, quite different from their English counterparts. What was similar was the frequent long-distance trips completed such as one from Lake George, N.Y. to Florida.

The Wise Wood’s journey to Prince Edward Island had really begun the previous year with a trip from New York to Gloucester on Cape Ann in Massachusetts. The Cape Cod Canal was not to open until more than seven years later and so the first challenge for the pair was to round Cape Cod in the cold swells of the Atlantic Ocean.

Once this was accomplished safely the proposal for the next year was to follow the Maine Coast north up to the Bay of Fundy, across the Chignecto Isthmus and Northumberland Strait to Prince Edward Island.  The pair left Gloucester in mid-July. When the wind favoured they sailed, but they  paddled most of the way, and stopped nights on shore at some house or settlement, or perhaps camped when necessary. Normally they made from thirty to thirty-five miles per day. After nineteen days paddling and sailing and a few days spent with friends at Campobello Island they reached Saint John.  Fog and storm kept them there for almost a week. Stopping at St. Martin’s and again at Alma they crossed the Bay and reached Sackville on the evening of Monday 17 August.

Loading the Patsy Green on the New Brunswick and Price Edward Island Railway train they re-launched at the “rather unattractive seaport of Cape Tormentine” but were again delayed by bad weather for most of the week. Setting off on Friday afternoon they decided to cross, not to the short direct route to Cape Traverse, but bound for Victoria cutting off a few miles by the diagonal. Three-quarters of the way across they were struck by a squall but kept their small sails up even though lobster boats around them were “scudding under bare poles.” They landed safely at the nearest shore, Augustine Cove, where they were “entertained at the hospitable home” of Louis Howatt for several days.

After a few days in Charlottetown at the Victoria Hotel the Wise Woods left for home – by steamer to Pictou then rail to Yarmouth, then by steamship to New York. The Patsy Ann accompanied them as baggage. In mid-September the story of their trip appeared in the magazine section of the New York Herald and was picked up in numerous newspapers across the United States. For most editors the lead feature of the story was not that the trip had been completed but that it had been completed by a woman! For once it was “Mrs. Henry A. Wise Wood and husband” rather than “Mr. and wife.” While only the Herald seems to have developed artwork for the story most of the papers re-printing it did insert a grainy photo of the couple in Charlottetown Harbour, as seen above.  Presumably while underway in stormy waters the straw boaters and neckties were safely below.

Magazine Section New York Herald 18 September 1908

Patsy Green on display in Clayton N.Y. photo from: http://www.sailingobsession.ca/2014/07/mr-mrs-wood-patsy-green.html

The last word of the story, however, is from Henry. When asked why the couple had embarked on the trip he said “When I take my vacation I want to get away from the sound of steam and the chug-chug of the motor boat I like to get out on the sea with only sails and your own hands to help you along.”  Today the Patsy Green is part of the collection of the Antique Boat Museum in the Thousand Islands at Clayton New York, a considerable distance from the salt water where she achieved her fame.

Mrs. Brassey is not amused by Charlottetown

In spite of a few scurrilous comments from muckraking journalists it is often difficult to get a sense of what 19th century visitors to Charlottetown really thought of the place. By and large the published reports were polite. After all, they would appear in newspapers or books which the population might read.  Exceptions can be found in private accounts such as diaries and personal letters not intended for publication. Another outlet for the uncensored remarks was in private publications not intended for any but a select few of family and friends. Such is the case for an illustrated volume which was privately printed in 1872 by Anna Brassey.

Brassey was the wife of Thomas Brassey whose family had made its fortune in railway construction in England which enabled the family to live a comfortable life of leisure. Although Thomas served as a member of parliament he was also an avid yachtsman and traveller. Anna documented their voyages in a series of volumes, several of which became best-sellers. The best known of these was the A Voyage in the Sunbeam (1878) which described the round the world tour of their private yacht.   An earlier trip to North America is the subject of a volume printed for private distribution titled A Cruise in the Eothen.

Screw Steam Yacht ‘EOTHEN”  Royal Yacht Squadron 1864

The Eothen, a 340 ton steam yacht, had been built of iron at the James Ash shipyard in London for Arthur Anderson in 1864. Anderson was chairman of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, an enterprise which still exists. One of their P&O cruise ships visited Charlottetown in the summer of 2019. Brassey acquired the Eothen in 1872 and set off for North America. The Eothen was the first steam yacht to cross from England to Canada but Anna was not aboard for the Altantic crossing as she came to Canada on one of the Allen Line Steamers to Montreal and joined the yacht there.  The family toured Quebec and Ontario and then took the Eothen to New York. Anna’s brief sojourn in Charlottetown was one of a number of stops. The Eothen came down Northumberland Strait and anchored inside Point Prim owing to strong winds. The next day the yacht approached Charlottetown.  The three-masted iron vessel must have seemed a considerable extravagance to the townsfolk. She was 152 feet long and 22 feet wide and even though her sails were a supplement to her 62 horse powered engine she had a graceful and pleasing shape. While the residents of Charlottetown may have been impressed by the vessel the feeling was not reciprocated. If Anna was underwhelmed by Charlottetown (a second-rate country town) she was appalled by the people (their ugliness is extreme).  All in  all it was not a happy visit, or perhaps Anna was not a person easily amused. The residents of the town remained blissfully unaware of her comments as her book was likely not circulated in the colony.

Anna Brassey 1839 – 1887

Tuesday, October 8th.—The fires were only banked up for the night, and at daylight we started again, and steamed up Hillsborough Bay, a distance of ten miles, to Charlottetown, the capital of Prince Edward’s Island, where we dropped anchor at nine a.m. Here we found H.M.S. the “Niobe,” which divides with the “Lapwing” the task of looking after and protecting our fisheries on this coast. At the present moment, owing to some absurd local dispute between the officials of Prince Edward’s Island and those of America, the fishing vessels from the United States are not allowed to take fish within three miles of the shore, where all the best fish are to be found. This seems very greedy, as the waters are quite wide enough, and there is fish in plenty and to spare for all.

Eothen in Montreal 1872. Note that the foremast now carries yards

We landed at Charlottetown with considerable difficulty, as there are no steps anywhere and we were obliged to climb across rafts, and over huge blocks of timber.
This city is very like most others in America. It contains no handsome buildings in particular, but there are numerous shops, and it may be fairly compared with ordinary second-rate English country towns.
The land in Prince Edward’s Island generally, but especially in the vicinity of Charlottetown, is of great fertility, and to its agricultural resources the island owes its activity. The day we arrived was market day, as well as the great annual cattle-fair, and the streets were therefore crowded with a most cadaverous-looking population. There were a great many Micmac Indians selling baskets. These Indians are not unlike gipsies in appearance; their complexions are dusky brown, and they are remarkable for their long, lanky black hair, and very high cheek-bones.
The Market Hall is a fine building, well supplied with fresh provisions, which included all the vegetables and fruits familiar to us in England.
The cattle and horses at the fair were anything but first-rate; there were, however, a few good specimens, which is perhaps as much as we ought to expect, considering it is but a small island.
The Post Office is an enormous structure, but there is not much business going on there, except when the mails arrive and depart, once a fortnight. There is no postal delivery here, so every one has to call for letters.
After lunch we started in two waggons to call on the Governor first, and then to drive round the “royalties,” as part of the island is called. Our horses were good, but the drivers fearfully reckless; and as the roads are very bad, and full of deep ruts, it was a marvel we did not come to grief, as we seemed to be plunging in and out of the most frightful holes, whilst driving at considerable speed; indeed, several times we were nearly thrown from our seats. We must have driven a distance of sixteen miles, making quite a circuit through the country, the scenery of which was pretty and park-like, the land rich and well-cultivated. Towards evening, on our way back to the town, we met all the people driving out in small one-horse carts. There were a few on horseback, but none on foot.
We were much struck with the unhealthy look of the population in general: they are so pale and thin, their ugliness is extreme, and they all seem to have an extraordinary tendency to squint. We looked in vain for the robust and hearty peasantry of the rural districts of the old country, It seems hard to conjecture the cause for this marked deterioration of the descendants of Scotch, Irish, and English settlers. Probably the long winter may be to a great extent the reason. The impossibility of active and out-door operations at that season, and the consequent temptation to spend the day in heated rooms, smoking, and sipping strong liquors, are extremely prejudicial to the health of the population.
Prince Edward’s Island has not yet joined the Canadian Dominion. A railway is, however, being laid down, for which a loan is necessary; and as soon as the increased burden of taxation is more distinctly felt, it is probable that the people will be prepared to unite with the Dominion.
In the numerous crowd at the fair we were surprised to see so few persons bearing traces of superior refinement and culture. We had supposed that the poor gentleman might have found a field for enterprise in the Colony as well as the industrious labourer. But, however, it is not so. The farmers of Prince Edward’s Island are evidently men who, if they had remained at home, would have been earning a scanty living as day-labourers.
When we returned to the yacht in the evening we found it was blowing half a gale of wind.
Wednesday, October 9th.—Our wedding-day, twelve years ago. We started at six a.m., in spite of the gale blowing and the barometer being low; but the wind was fair, though strong, and we had only fifty miles to run in a comparatively sheltered sea.

From Pictou the Eothen visited Halifax and a number of American cities before returning to England. Again Anna took a regular steamer to cross the Atlantic. In 1881 Thomas was knighted and in 1886 became Earl Brassey, making Anna, Lady Brassey. In 1876 Brassey and his whole family took a year-long cruise around the world in a new yacht the Sunbeam which became the first private yacht to make a circumnavigation.  This trip was the subject of Anna’s most popular book.  She died aboard during another extended voyage in 1887.