Philip A. Rhodes THOR

Historical:

Thor was commissioned from Philip Rhodes by Edward Thurber in 1955. Her homeport was Oyster Bay, NY and her home club was Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club. The Thurber family spent each entire summers onboard cruising to Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket and Newport. Upon Edward’s death Thor was sold to a partnership in Connecticut. Much of her ownership history during the time is unknown, but Thor remained in New England.

For a time Thor was owned by Charles Dana, New York Yacht Club Commodore and Newport Shipyard owner. Mr. Dana donated Thor to Sail Martha’s Vineyard in 2016, making his announcement that year during the Vineyard Cup awards ceremony. Telling the crowd his family had many happy summers of sailing aboard Thor. “She’s a very special boat,” he said. “We salute what you all do here. We love what you’re doing.”

In 2019, Sail MV listed Thor for sale at which time Priscilla Thurber Constants, daughter of A. Edward Thurber, Jr., was alerted to Thor’s listing by Ian McCurdy. In August of 2019 Priscilla took ownership of Thor, bringing in a partner in George J. Ellis. After 37 years Thor was back in Thurber ownership and back in Oyster Bay.

Provenance (The Wall of Remembrance – The Owners, Crew & Notable Guest):

Owner/Guardian: (1955-1982) – A. Edward Thurber, Jr., Oyster Bay, N.Y., Indian Harbor Yacht Club.
Owner/Guardian: (1997-2006) – Alan Pesh, CEO and President of Ship Analytics, North Stonington, Connecticut.
Owner/Guardian: (2006-2016) – Charles & Posie Dana III, New York Yacht Club Commodore, Newport Shipyard owner (1998-2019) Donates Thor to (SMV)
Owner/Guardian: (2016-2019) – Sail Martha’s Vineyard (SMV)
Owner/Guardian: (2019) – Priscilla Thurber Constants & George J. Ellis, Oyster Bay, N.Y.

Resources

George J. Ellis
Vineyard Gazette
Philip L. Rhodes and His Yacht Designs
Lloyd’s Register of American Yachts