Type: P Class
The Hodgdon yard of East Boothbay, Maine launched the 55-foot “P-class” gaff-rigged sloop in 1916. BERNICE was designed by George Owen, a contemporary of Nathaniel Herreshoff. L. Francis Herreshoff once said “George Owen’s yachts could even be said to be beautiful, and this adjective could only be truthfully applied to a few things in this world.”
Owen was known for producing consistently excellent racing yachts, and for his work developing rating systems. BERNICE is considered to be the last remaining Owen designed P-class boat. She sailed only a few years in the salt water of the east coast before moving to the Great Lakes. In the late 1920s or early 1930s she was re-rigged to a fractional marconi yawl and an engine was installed to facilitate cruising.
When Bernice arrived in Rockport for restoration, after spending much of her life in the fresh waters of the Great Lakes, the boat was in need of major work. All but four pairs of frames were replaced, and much of the planking as well. The boat is double-planked: outer layer is mahogany and the original inner planks are of cypress; any new planks are in western red cedar. To support the boat during this extensive rebuild, Rockport Marine created a support system that was bolted into the shop’s walls and ceiling.
As a racer, Bernice had a very spare interior, but Brendan Riordan, Rockport Marine’s designer, created a new arrangement plan to accommodate a family of four on weekend cruises and utilize the space available as fully as possible. There’s a master cabin aft, two berths amidships, and two pipe berths in the forepeak. The small galley has pressurized hot and cold water and refrigeration. A diesel heater was installed as well. Interior finish is mahogany stained a warm color and finished with ten coats of satin-finish varnish. A new main boom was part of the rebuild; new sails are by Nat Wilson and the rigging was completed by Tom Ward.
Bernice
Specs:
LOA: 53’4″, Waterline Length: 36’6″, Beam: 10’6″, Draft: 7’6″
Restoration by :
Rockport Marine
Contact:
1 Main Street
Rockport, ME, 04856
Phone: 207-236-9651
Website: www.rockportmarine.com
Launch Date:
May 2, 2008
Launch Site:
Rockport, Maine
