Chapter 1 sample page: Hog Island Yacht Club


The club was founded in the midst of the American Revolution, after British warships had given chase to a number of American schooners and sloops that were transporting embargoed goods through Narragansett Bay. Armed with local knowledge, the rebel skippers sailed across the shoals around Hog Island, where the pursuing British ships with their deeper drafts often ran aground. After the war, the retired American captains banded together to form a sailing, racing, and social club located on the shore of the small island.


During more than two centuries the Hog Island Yacht Club has maintained its reputation as a somewhat rebellious and yet forward-looking group of sailors. Their series of Wednesday night races provide a competitive but relaxed opportunity to practice the arts of sail trim and navigation as the boats make their way around the island, endeavoring at all times to avoid the treacherous shoals. The annual HIYC cruise takes a group of hearty sailing families off to points east and west to enjoy each other's company and to visit clubs throughout New England.

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