By Brian Reid, 2001-2002

yachts on the river as of 1866. Ice yacht clubs dotted the shores of the Hudson from Newburgh to Albany. It was acknowledged that the handsomest and fastest boats were built and sailed in Poughkeepsie. (A comprehensive history of the Poughkeepsie club was compiled by Harry Briggs for the 1950 Dutchess County Historical Society Year Book.) Local papers like the Poughkeepsie Eagle regularly covered the activities of the ice yachtsmen. One article from February of 1866 reported on a sailing adventure from Poughkeepsie to Albany in which three Poughkeepsie yachts sailed the frozen Hudson River to Albany and back over the course of three days! Headlines screamed the latest racing and sailing news, conveying what must have been thrilling afternoons on the river. The February 3, 1879 Poughkeepsie Eagle contained one such banner headline to a long article covering a race: "Thrilling Ice Yacht Race! A Big Victory for Poughkeepsie! Buckhout's new boat beating the crack yachts of the New Hamburg Club - Terrific Speed - Ten Miles in Ten Minutes Striking an ice hummock two feet deep and clearing it with a bound - A contest that will long be remembered."

Keen competition among sailors from Poughkeepsie and many other clubs up and down the river led to continued refinements and grander yachts. The early designs of the 1860s led to the construction of bigger and faster yachts. The grandest yacht was constructed for John A. Roosevelt. Icicle, built by the renowned boat builder Jacob Buckhout of Poughkeepsie, measured 68'10" in length and carried 1070 square foot of sail. It was the view at that time that the bigger the boat the faster the sailing. Racing was fierce and the sailors of the day regularly held competitions for silver cups, silver tillers, fur coats, silk pennants and, occasionally, money.

Jacob Buckhout, along with his son George, built many of the fastest yachts of the day, from 1860 right through into the 1920s in their shop on the river under the Poughkeepsie Railroad

Bridge. Both were accomplished sailors as well. They designed and built elegant craft for many of the moneyed residents of Poughkeepsie and the surrounding towns. Jacob built yachts for John A. Roosevelt, and George built Franklin Delano Roosevelt's boat Hawk, which can be seen at the FDR museum today.

Jacob also had a hand in building what was called "The Finest Ice Yacht in the World" according to the headline in a May 1876 article in the Poughkeepsie Eagle. Whiff was commissioned by Irving Grinnell of New Hamburg, and built of the finest materials available for display at the Philadelphia Centennial in 1876. As reported" . . . the frame was built by Jacob Buckhout of Poughkeepsie of clear white pine, the side pieces cased on the outside with black walnut relieved by gold bead. The deck is floored with very narrow alternate strips of spruce and red cedar. The bulkhead is of black walnut made with a beautiful and graceful sweep. The mast bench is of two arched pieces of ash, and a walnut truss runs the whole length of the top of the keelson, and runner plank is of white pine cut on a slight arch and fitted with oak chocks to receive skates. . . . Her name is "Whiff' written upon the stem in fancy nickel plated letters, while her figure head is a very handsome flying dragon with open wings, a long tail, a stretched-out neck, and covered with heavy scales, slightly gilded . ... the whole of it superbly carved out of solid black walnut."

It was at the Centennial that many Americans first saw an iceboat. It has been written that some individuals took the idea and began building boats in many other parts of the country after that event. The Buckhouts reputation continued to grow and they built fine yachts for sailors in Long Island, New Jersey, and Wisconsin. Whiff was discovered in the barns at the old Grinnell estate in New Hamburg and was restored by the Hudson River Ice Yacht Club. It is still sailed today by members of the club.

Continued tinkering to design speedier craft eventually led to smaller, faster and more stable boats. A landmark (icemark?)

as the "Ice Challenge Pennant of America," became the sought after prize by ice yachtsmen for many years. The height of ice yachting from 1881 to 1910 or so was marked by challenges and racing for this much sought after symbol of supremacy on the ice. It was first raced for in 1881 and won by Phantom of the New Hamburg Ice Yacht Club. News of this pennant made its way to New Jersey and soon a serious rivalry between Hudson River clubs and sailors from the North Shrewsbury Ice Yacht and Boat Club, in Red Bank, was on. Time and again, the Shrewsbury club sent its big boats, Scud & Dreadnaught, to try to snatch the pennant. Time and again it was the Hudson River clubs that held the honor of fastest yachts in the world. Two boats from the Hudson River Ice Yacht Club (HRIYC), which was formed in 1885, won the pennant most often. Icicle, redesigned on the 11 Scott" model and owned by John A. Roosevelt, won the title 4 times. Jack Frost, owned and sailed by Hyde Park's Archibald Rogers, claimed the pennant 5 times. Both boats and the pennant survive today.

The original Ice Challenge Pennant of America was placed in the Franklin Delano Roosevelt library in Hyde Park. It is currently awaiting funding for a much needed restoration. Icicle is on display at the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Kingston. Members of the HRIYC lovingly restored Jack Frost in 1973 and they maintain and sail it to this day. The 50 foot long, 750 square foot of sail Jack Frost last sailed on the Hudson River in 1994, thrilling onlookers and sailors alike.

The golden age of ice yachting began to decline after the first decade of the twentieth century. Aging members, years of no ice, and efforts to keep the Hudson River open for navigation doomed the Hudson River club. By the 1920s racing was minimal and fewer boats were seen on the ice. The Hudson River Ice Yacht Club, which boasted the largest roster of members at the turn of the century, was all but folded. Boats were sold off, stored away in barns and, according to one story, burned by troops stationed in Hyde Park during World War IL Racing and design innovation moved to the

Midwest-especially around Madison, Wisconsin. New front steering boats became the rage. Lighter, faster and less expensive to build, design classes like the DN, Skeeter, Yankee, Arrow and others became the boats of choice for winter sailors. Fortunately a hardy group of enthusiasts, led by Ray Ruge, of Cornwall, resurrected the old stern steerers here in the Mid-Hudson Valley. Ruge had helped re-form. tl}e Hudson River Ice Yacht club in 1964.

After a 40-year hiatus of activity of the HRIYC, Ruge and others began hauling out the old boats and restoring ones that had fallen into disrepair. Ruge led the rebuilding of the old Rogers' boat Jack Frost in 1973.

HRIYC club m.em.bers are hoping to soon sail Jack Frost for another long sought-after prize. Gardner Van Nostrand of the Orange Lake Ice Yacht Club presented the "Challenge Ice Yacht Cup of America," also known as the "Van Nostrand Cup," in a deed of gift in 1889. The 12" high silver pitcher, designed by Tiffany's, was raced for in 1891 and won by Scud, of the Shrewsbury club. The trophy was long forgotten and never raced for again. It was Ruge, the iceboating authority and enthusiast, who tracked down the valuable cup in a safe deposit box in New Jersey. Enthusiasm. built as news of the Van Nostrand Cup spread. Finally, in 1978, the Hudson River Club sent several boats down to Red Bank N.J. to sail on the Shrewsbury River. This tim.e the Hudson River yachts did not prevail and the cup stayed with the Shrewsbury club. No other racing for the cup has occurred since then. Years of missed attempts and poor ice have stymied efforts to race for the cup. Renewed interest and camaraderie between the two old rival clubs brings optimism. that the 113-year-old cup will be raced for again. The Hudson River Ice Yacht Club will formally challenge the Shrewsbury club to race for the Van Nostrand Cup. Hopes for som.e good river or lake ice and a desire to m.ake this happen are high. The sight of the biggest stern steerers of the two clubs sailing together would be a sight to see.