The Classic Antique Power Yacht WASAKA III
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"The WASAKA III is a fifty-three foot wooden power yacht designed by Ralph E. Winslow (of Quincy, Massachusetts) and constructed at the Britt Brothers Yard (Lynn, Massachusetts). The WASAKA III, then named the OCTALEE VI, was launched in the spring of 1912. The OCTALEE VI was designed and constructed for Mr. Edmund H. Tarbell of Boston, Massachusetts. His last in a series of seven similar power yachts build for him based on his own personal experience owning and handling power craft along the New England coast...."
"Cruise of 1926 (text from the Boston Yacht Club Yearbook 1927): The annual cruise of the Boston Yacht Club is an event to which its members look forward with the greatest anticipation of pleasure. In almost all previous years, the weather conditions have been nearly perfect, and the cruise of 1926 had the usual good fortune. There was no rain, expect a couple of slight falls after dark, and only a little fog on two mornings. the moon also was well set for the event.
This cruise was different from those of previous years in that a night ocean race from Marblehead to Boothbay Harbor was arranged for sailing yachts, while the power craft could go as they pleased, to join the rest of the fleet next day, Sunday, a day of rest...."
"Wasaka III (MB: l. 53'0"; b. 10'0"; s. 9.0 k.; cpl. 6; a. 1 1-pdr., 1 Colt mg.)
Wasaka III—a wooden-hulled motorboat—was built at Lynn, Mass., by Britt Brothers, boat builders.
Acquired by the Navy in the spring of 1917 from Mr. John J. Martin of Boston under a free-lease agreement, Wasaka III was apparently manned on 22 April 1917, as her deck log indicates that the first men—the most senior rating being a Machinist's Mate 2d Class A. Rowbottom, USNRF—reported on board on that day.
There is no record of a commissioning, and the deck log does not start until 1 June 1917. Initially, Wasaka III—classified SP-342—operated from the Commonwealth Pier, Boston, Mass. On 26 September 1917, she shifted to the Bumkin Island section base, whence she operated for the duration of the war and into 1919.
Her log ends on 31 March 1919, and she was returned to her owner on 18 April of the same year."
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"Weymouth- Like golf balls and diamonds, historical treasures are, often as not, uncovered “in the rough.”
“The rough,” in this case, is a rather forlorn-looking boathouse on Commercial Street. Inside the weatherworn structure is “Wasaka III,” a 50-foot power yacht which has amassed some impressive historical credentials -- one which have become a source of perpetual fascination for its owner, David Higgs.
To being with, “Wasaka III,” circa 1912, has managed in its 63 years to ensnare the lives of some of Greater Boston’s more prominent figures.
First on the list is the late Ralph E. Winslow, an internationally know naval architect. MR. Winslow, a lifelong resident of Quincy, designed the yacht, which carried an original price tag of $15,000.
During his illustrious career, Mr. Winslow was the construction superintendent of the Herreshoff Co. a Bristol, R.I. firm known throughout the world for its high caliber of naval architecture. He later became a senior naval architect in the War Department, designing during World War II the first 110-foot submarine chaser. He also designed the first diesel-powered yacht.
Following its completion at the prestigious Britt Brothers boatyard in Lynn, “Wasaka” began a sea-going odyssey which included eight different ownerships and brought the yacht to the South Shore...."
