AMERICAN STEAM-SAIL SHIP 'STAR OF THE SOUTH' PASSING AMERICAN FULL RIGGED SHIP AT SEA
Signed, lower right
Oil on canvas
25 7/8 x 33 13/16 in. ( 65.72 x 85.88 cm )

Quite possibly built in 1853 in St. John's, Newfoundland for N. deMill the STAR OF THE SOUTH is later listed as being built in Philadelphia. Most likely, this is where her engines and machinery were installed by Birely & Son. She was always based out of New York Port and carried a three-masted screw schooner rig with a propeller for auxiliary propulsion. Built of wood, the STAR OF THE SOUTH's dimensions were 208 feet long with a beam of 21 feet. She is last recorded in American Lloyds for 1872.

SCHOONER YACHT 'ATALANTA' OCEAN RACE
Unsigned
Oil on canvas
12 x 16 in. ( 30.48 x 40.64 cm )

The yacht, ATALANTA, was a centerboard schooner, built by David Carll of City Island, Bronx, New York, in 1873 for W.R. Vermilye of the New York Yacht Club. She is not to be confused with the vessel of the same name that was defeated in the 1881 America's Cup. A very rare subject, ATALANTA, was also painted by Frederic Cozzens and would be an interesting research project.

NEW YORK YACHT CLUB YACHT 'COMET' OFF THE BATTERY
Signed, lower right
Oil on canvas
12 x 16 in. ( 30.48 x 40.64 )

The very successful yacht COMET was designed in 1874 by "Capt'n Phip" Elsworth of Bayonne, NJ for J.H. Langley, a member of the New York Yacht Club, the Brooklyn Yacht Club, and the Vice Commodore of the Union Yacht Club of New Jersey. A centerboard schooner, COMET, was built by Alonzo E. Smith of Islip, Long Island and won more racing silver in her day than any other yacht in the country. Her principal dimensions were: 82' length overall, 22'6" beam, 5'6" draft, 18' draft with her centerboard down and she displaced 83.8 tons.

SCHOONER YACHT 'DAUNTLESS' OFF DOVER
Signed, lower right
Oil on panel
9 1/4 x 15 1/2 in. ( 23.49 x 39.37 cm )

In 1867, the DAUNTLESS, owned by Commodore James Gordon Bennett, sailed across the Atlantic to race in British water. Three years later, in 1870, she raced Sir James Ashbury's schooner the CAMBRIA, the America's Cup challenger of that year, back across the Atlantic. Buttersworth painted DAUNTLESS several times. Here she is off the white cliffs of Dover with the Roman lighthouse and Norman fortress perched far above. Years later Dover Castle helped defend English shores during the Battle of Britain.

'MADELEINE' OFF THE BATTERY
Oil on canvas
20 x 32 in.

The MADELEINE, owned by Commodore John S. Dickerson of the Brooklyn Yacht Club and designed by Jacob Voorhis, had an illustrious history. She was built in 1868 by David Kirby at Rye, New York as a centerboard sloop. In 1870, MADELEINE was partially rebuilt and converted to a schooner, later becoming a member of the New York Yacht Club fleet in 1876. That year she defended the America's Cup against Canadian challenger COUNTESS OF DUFFERIN. Swiftest in the New York Yacht Club fleet, MADELEINE easily won the Cup. The COUNTESS was out-classed, and she lost two races by large margins. The old AMERICA sailed the second race unofficially and finished 19 minutes ahead of the Canadian schooner. MADELEINE's original builder's half-model still hangs in the New York Yacht Club. Her principal dimensions were 106 feet 4 inches on deck, 24 feet 3 three inches beam, with a draft of 7 feet, three inches.

AMERICAN CLIPPER 'RACER'
Oil on canvas
27 x 34 inches

The RACER of 1,669 tons belonged to the fleet of David Ogden's "Red Cross Line" operating between New York and Liverpool. Her first voyage to Liverpool was August 20th, 1851. She eventually made regular trips to California and later carried tea from Shanghai to London. Sailing from Liverpool to New York on May 5th, 1856, she struck on the Arklow Bank near Wicklow on the east coast of Ireland a total loss with no casualties. The RACER was a successful design and logged some very fast passages.

CENTERBOARD SLOOP 'TRUANT'
Oil on canvas
18 x 30 in. ( 45.72 x 76.20 cm )

The sloop TRUANT initially appears to be a sandbagger but is actually a larger class of open centerboard sloop similar to the well known yachts SCHEMER and WAVE of about 40 to 50 feet. TRUANT, shown here with her professional crew, was designed and built by J.J. Driscoll for J.N. Kalley of New York, and member of the Shelter Island Yacht Club.

THE GREAT ATLANTIC OCEAN RACE
Oil on canvas

See Below

THE GREAT ATLANTIC OCEAN RACE
Oil on canvas
24 x 32 in. ( 60.96 x 81.28 cm )

In December 1866 The New York Yacht Club schooners, HENRIETTA, FLEETWING, and VESTA raced across the Atlantic from Sandy Hook to the Needles, Isle of Wight, England, completing one of the most famous ocean races in the history of the sport. Incredibly, all three yachts finished within hours of each other with HENRIETTA winning the enormous sum of $90,000. followed by FLEETWING and VESTA in that order. James Gordon Bennett, Jr. was the only owner aboard his own yacht (HENRIETTA) for which he received much acclaim and was soon elected Commodore of the NYYC when only twenty-six years old.

'NEW YORK HERALD' OFF THE BATTERY
Oil on panel
7 5/8 x 9 3/4 in. ( 19.37 x 24.77 cm )

In this fascinating image of lower Manhattan we have the reporter dispatch boat the NEW YORK HERALD. In the nineteenth century newspapers competed by obtaining international news from incoming ships. The speedy, yacht-like N.Y. HERALD in her bright red livery with large American ensign and house flag would be difficult to miss. Just ahead of the HERALD is a reporter hailing the vessel from a whitehall pulling boat with Castle Garden (ex-Castle Clinton) in the background. To the stern of the HERALD is the U.S.S. PENNSYLVANIA, the only first-rate, 120 gun, ship-of-the-line, of the U.S. Navy that was unfortunately burned and scuttled by her crew at Hampton Roads to prevent capture by the Confederates during the Civil War

YACHTS 'GRACIE', 'VISION' AND 'CORNELIA'
Oil on canvas

"GRACIE", "VISION", and "CORNELIA&quto; Rounding Sandy Hook in the New York Yacht Club Regatta of June 11, 1874. The sloops VISION (white topsides) and GRACIE (black topsides) spent most of their careers racing each other taking turns winning the silver. The older and slower schooner CORNELIA is just rounding the mark far behind. The famed GRACIE was a centerboard sloop that was rebuilt and lengthened several times and proved to be a very successful racer.

SCHOONER YACHT RACING OFF THE NEEDLE, ISLE OF WIGHT
Oil on panel
10 x 14 in. ( 25.40 x 35.56 cm )

This is a wonderful portrait of an American schooner yacht off the Needles, Isle of Wight, England. Although the schooner remains unidentified, further research should reveal its identity. Typically, nineteenth century schooner yachts could be identified by the owner's yacht club burgee flying from the foremast and the owner's personal "house-flag" flying from the main or aft mast. Every house-flag was unique to a vessel and combined with the club burgee a vessel could be positively identified but sometimes only after hours or days of research. The Needles off the Isle of Wight are best remembered as a backdrop when the yacht AMERICA won the Hundred Guinea Cup in 1851, now known as the America's Cup.

CUNARD STEAMER 'HIBERNIA'
Oil on canvas
18 x 24 in. ( 45.72 x 60.96 cm )

At the end of 1847, the British Government-backed and heavily Subsidized Cunard Line moved to inaugurate a regular scheduled steam packet service direct between Liverpool and New York, and on December 29, 1847, the HIBERNIA of 1,422 tons (built in 1843) reached New York from Boston to be ready to commence service by sailing from New York to Liverpool on Saturday, January 1, 1848. HIBERNIA had a speed of 9 1/2 knots.

RACING ON THE HUDSON RIVER
Oil on canvas
14 x 22 in. ( 35.56 x 55.88 cm )

In this view along the Hudson highlands, Buttersworth depicts a group of sloop yachts reaching towards the finish line. The unidentified sloop in the foreground has her two lower sails set, her skipper choosing not to set her flying jib or main topsail and overpower the hull. This appears to be a compromise sloop with both a deeper keel and centerboard compared with the earlier very shoal draft centerboard hulls of sloops several years earlier.

SUMMER SQUALL
Oil on canvas
22 1/8 x 36 in. ( 56.20 x 91.44 cm )

In this wonderful yachting scene, Buttersworth depicts large unidentified schooner yachts healing from a sudden squall quickly attempting to reduce sail area by striking their foretopsails and soon, one would imagine their main topsails. Off to leeward a three-masted ship's crew scramble up the ratlines to reduce sail and gain better control of the ship. Further research should identify both the vessel and the schooner yachts.

SLOOP 'ANGLER' DURING REGATTA
Oil on canvas
12 1/4 x 16 in. ( 31.12 x 40.64 cm )

Here we have a small fleet of mixed sloop and schooner yachts running downwind during a regatta. The yacht fleet is divided by a speeding outbound U.S. Mail paddle-wheel steamer flying the U.S. ensign with her passengers observing the regatta. The yacht in the foreground is the 1882 centerboard sloop ANGLER of 28 feet waterline built by J.F. Munn of Bay Ridge, New Jersey. ANGLER was built for J.B. Morgan of the Seawanhaka Yacht Club of New York.

THE BARK 'CHANTICLEER'
Oil on canvas

Here, Buttersworth depicts the wonderfully elegant black hulled bark CHANTICLEER, her elegance enhanced by a gold cove stripe along the length of her hull and her masts raking aft enhancing the illusion of speed. The Bark CHANTICLEER was built by Thomas N. Stack, was 332 tons, 115 feet, 26-1/2 beam, and was launched Jan. 7, 1854. Owned by Freeman & Co., New York.

AMERICAN VESSELS DISPLAYING THE FLAG
Oil on canvas
18 x 24 in. ( 45.72 x 60.96 cm )

Here we have in the foreground an early sloop yacht running downwind with her crew on the mainsheet preparing to round the mark. On the foredeck, crewmembers prepare to raise the jib for the new tack. The sloop is towing its Whitehall pulling boat, which is typically left at the mooring during a race. Beyond the sloop we have a U.S. Navy frigate and a commercial square-rigger heading into port with another sloop yacht leading the race in the distance.

SLOOP YACHTS ON A BEAM REACH
Oil on panel
6 x 7 1/2 in.

Here Buttersworth depicts two unidentified centerboard sloop yachts on a beam reach at speed. The small size of this painting does not allow great detail but then again these vessels were beautifully simple and elegant. One would think that it would be a simple task identifying the house flag flying from the sloop's topmast. However, that has not been the case. The plumb-bow sloops appear to be large centerboard daysailers of about 50 feet on deck with enormous sail areas manned by professional crews.

SCHOONER YACHTS RACING
Oil on panel
8 x 10 in. ( 20.32 x 25.40 cm )

See Below

RACING SCHOONER YACHTS
Oil on panel
8 x 10 in. ( 20.32 x 25.40 cm )

Here, in two separate paintings, Buttersworth depicts two unidentified schooner yachts running downwind towards the mark with the aid of square sails hoisted from the foremast of each vessel. It took great skill of the skippers running downwind not to jibe the main booms with their enormous sail areas that perhaps could result in a sprung mast. The Whitehall pulling boat is an odd sight way out in the ocean but Buttersworth simply uses it to fill the foreground and create some depth to the composition.

YACHT 'DAUNTLESS' RACING TOWARDS VICTORY
Oil on panel
12 x 16 in. ( 30.48 x 40.64 cm )

The famed schooner yacht DAUNTLESS on a beam reach. The DAUNTLESS was modeled and built in 1866 as L'HIRONDELLE by Forsyth & Morgan at Mystic Bridge, Connecticut; in 1870 she was rebuilt by J.B. Van Deusen. In this operation 38 feet of her underbody was cut away and rebuilt with a lengthening of her waterline from 107 to 116 feet 5 inches. Bought by J.G. Bennett, Jr. of the New York Yacht Club, the DAUNTLESS had a wonderful career as a trans-Atlantic ocean racer and won the hearts of many admirers.

ROUNDING THE WINDWARD MARK
Oil on panel
7 3/4 x 15 7/8 in.

On this small panel, Buttersworth manages to completely fill the horizon with swift vessels sailing in every direction. There's a lot of action in such a confined space. Here we have four schooner yachts racing with the lead yacht just completing the raising of her fisherman staysail between her foremast and mainmast. Her crew will now struggle to sheet the powerful sail in, as winches have not yet been invented. In the distance a very large, early British passenger steamer head in or out of port.

SCHOONER YACHTS 'FLEETWING' AND 'DREADNAUGHT'
Oil on panel
10 1/4 x 16 in.

In this dramatic view, the schooner yacht FLEETWING leads the schooner DREADNAUGHT around the mark. The FLEETWING, built in 1866, was a keel yacht of 212 tons, built by Joseph B. Van Deusen at the foot of 16th Street; New York and best remembered as a participant of the Great Ocean Race competing against the schooners VESTA and HENRIETTA. The DREADNAUGHT, was designed by William Townsend and built by the famed yard of C. & R. Poillon of Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York, and was the first schooner yacht with outside ballast.

AMERICA'S CUP DEFENDER 'SAPPHO'
Oil on panel
8 x 10 in. ( 20.32 x 25.40 cm )

The keel yacht SAPPHO (121'x 27'4' x 12'9"; 310 tons) was modeled by William Townsend and built by C. & R. Poillon in 1867. Originally owned by E.A. Lawrence, she was altered in 1869 and passed to W.P. Douglas. In 1871 she defeated CAMBRIA and successfully defended the America's Cup.