A-cat sailboats donated to Maritime Museum will be used by local sailing groups

The New Jersey Maritime Museum, famous for its collection of marine artifacts from prehistoric fossils to antique navigational equipment, recently received two very big contributions: a pair of A-cat sailboats. Copies of the original boats once used for fishing and sailing parties, the 28-foot by 11-foot sailboats carry 615 square feet of sail, have masts that are 46 feet high and weigh nearly 4,700 pounds.

Photo via New Jersey Maritime Museum
Deborah Whitcraft, founder of the NJMM, hangs
out on Ghost — one of the donated boats.

Perfect for racing on Barnegat Bay’s shallow waters, the boats will be used by local sailing organizations and groups on a lend/lease basis since there is no way either one could be on display inside or outside the museum.

Ghost is the gift of William Fortenbaugh of Bay Head and Raven was donated by Dave Alldian and Mike Tufariello of Brick, Cory Wingerter of Millstone Township and Peter Stagaard of Mantoloking. The vessels are being stored for the winter at Beaton’s Boat Yard in Brick and DeRouville’s Boat Works in Bayville.

“We are honored to be part of this aspect of Barnegat Bay history, and thank the donors who will be providing so much education and pleasure for so many people from the lower part of Barnegat Bay,” said Deborah Whitcraft, founder and president of the New Jersey Maritime Museum.

The boats “give a whole new dimension to the maritime history of New Jersey,” added Jim Vogel, the museum’s executive director and a retired commercial fisherman.

In the 1800s, Barnegat Bay mariners needed hefty boats to move goods across the choppy waters, and those who returned to the docks first obtained the best prices for their catch. Of course, it didn’t take long for sailing the workboats to become sport.

“It’s no accident that boats evolve from the waters they ply,” said Roy Wilkins, intercollegiate sailing coach at Ocean County College and Monmouth University. “Single-sail catboats were powerful vessels that could handle heavy loads, and while big sails were a handful, they were necessary to make good time, efficient in both strong or light winds. Being first to bring goods to market or deliver passengers has always been a priority for profit-minded entrepreneurs, and racing for almost any reason is part of the fabric of human nature. It was inevitable that the workboats of Barnegat Bay would compete.”

In 1871, with only eight gaff-rigged working boats participating, the Toms River Challenge Cup was started. The race was open to all yacht owners who lived between Bay Head and Tuckerton. The sailboats changed from workboats to pleasure and racing vessels in 1922 when noted naval architect Charles Mower designed an A-cat that won the Toms River Challenge trophy.

Wilkins, who is also co-author of A Cats: a Century of Tradition, will present “A History of the Barnegat Bay A Cats” at the museum on Friday, Nov. 27, at 7 p.m. Refreshments will be available before and after the presentation. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.

A display on the history of A-cats with historic and modern photos will be available at the museum in the spring.

— Kelley Anne Essinger

This article was published in The SandPaper.