Sandbagger Annie

Sandbagger Annie. .

Built: D.O. Richmond, Mystic, CT, 1880 , Length: 28'9" (l.o.a. 63'4") , Beam: 12'4" , Draft: 5'8" (centerboard down), "The finest helmsmanship ever seen was that practiced on a sandbagger…She was driven along just on the edge of her stability, and the least uncertainty of movement, the slightest hesitation, meant a capsize." , - Thomas Fleming Day

, Annie is a centerboard racing sloop of a type popular between 1865 and 1896. Adapted from wide, shallow New York oyster boats, these sloops raced in classes based on length alone, so skippers could carry as much sail as they dared. To keep from capsizing, a crew of 14 men balanced Annie's 1,313 square feet of sail with their own weight and with 1,500 pounds of sandbags, which they shifted each time the boat tacked. Because of this moveable ballast, these extreme sailboats came to be known as sandbaggers., Born in an era when professional watermen and amateurs competed together, sandbagger racing spread from New York to Philadelphia, New Orleans, and the West Coast. Large crowds watched the races, with many spectators betting on their favorite boats. But by 1896 sandbagger racing had ended because the yacht clubs running races prohibited professionals from competing, banned moveable ballast, and changed how boats were measured., Annie was built for Henry H. Tift of Mystic and Tifton, George. She raced successfully in eastern Long Island Sound and during the winter in Georgia and Florida. Like many sandbaggers, she was converted for fishing or oystering when her racing career finished. In 1931, Annie came to Mystic Seaport and became the first boat in a collection that has grown to more than 500 watercraft., Donor: Dr. C.K. Stillman