| AdminHistory | The Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club (RYYC) was established in 1847, its first regatta being held on 28 September 1847 on the River Humber. Initially there were two groups of yachtsmen at Hull and Whitby, although meetings were held at the Vittoria Hotel, Nelson Street, Hull. From the outset the Club was given the Royal prefix, and names of vessels and their owners needed to be submitted to the Admiralty for Royal warrants to be made out for each vessel.
In 1896 the Club's fiftieth regatta was held and in commemoration of this Queen Victoria presented a Queen's Cup to the Club. Also in this year the Club floated the Yorkshire Yacht Club House Company Limited in order to raise money for a club house at Bridlington Quay. However it was not until 25 November 1904 that a decision was finally made to move the Club's base to Bridlington. One of the chief reasons for this was a significant rise in the amount of steam traffic on the River Humber.
It was after this move to Bridlington that the RYYC supervised the birth of a new design class of yacht in 1898. Eight yachts were built at Itchen Ferry, near Southampton, for the exclusive use of the RYYC at Bridlington, with each yacht being of exactly the same design as the other. This class of yacht thus became known as the Yorkshire One Design (YOD) because all eight yachts were of one design, and racing of this class flourished at Bridlington. Some years later the class was dispersed to various locations across the country, but certain members of the RYYC were able to reform the class with four of the original YODs in 1926. This included the 'Ditherumpop', 'Saint', 'Iolanthe' and 'Yilt'. They were quickly followed by the acquisition of two other original YODS, 'Mona' and 'Sinner'.
In 1928 the RYYC occupied the old coastguard station but were unable to purchase it so in 1938 an option to buy was taken out on the Ozone Hotel, Windsor Crescent. The exterior of the building was renovated into an 'ocean liner' style, a fitting theme for the building's new purpose.
During the 1930s two new YODs were built, the 'Blackie' and 'Lady Lena'. After the Second World War the 'Joca', 'Jesta', 'Tito II', 'Yo Yo', and 'Titus' were added to the class as brand new YODs. The year 1973 was a milestone in the history of the YOD as it saw the first change to its design, which involved the gunter rig. However since then no other alterations appear to have been made.
In 1997 the Club celebrated its 150th anniversary, but due to cancellations caused by the Crimean War, and the First and Second World Wars it was only the 140th regatta. The guest of honour was His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the patron of the club.
The following year saw the 141st regatta on 15 August 1998, which was also the centenary of the Yorkshire One Design Class. Two months prior to this, former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath MP attended a naming ceremony for a replica of the YOD yacht 'Patience'. At the time of writing the RYYC continues to function and has a strong membership.
Sources: 'The Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club 1847-1998 and the Humber Regattas' by Arthur G Credland, 'East Yorkshire Historian', volume 1, 2000.
Bridlington Free Press, [Aug] 1957. |