The Islander, a G.L.

Watson pearl shines

again.
By Joan Sol

Islander is an auxiliary ketch, whose history spans 72 years. Holder of

a solo round the world navigation record, she still has the wherewithal
to win regattas on the classic boat circuit in the Mediterranean.
Product of George L. Watson’s company, one of the most renowned
yacht designers of all times, Islander has returned to the ship yard to
recover its creator’s inherent design.

When Quico Despuig, the boat builder who is currently leading the
restoration of Islander at Drassanes I Escar de Roses (Costa Brava,
Spain) emptied the interiors of the boat and stripped the hull’s paint,
who was amazed at the quality of the construction and the materials
that had been used. A part from some corroded iron floors and rotten
areas around the bow and a few frames, Islander is in as good
condition as the day it was launched, 72 years ago. The main
problems that affect it are due to repairs made with little knowledge
or care for the characteristics and identity of the boat. The mast, for
example, was deformed due to inappropriate rigging that made
sailing manoeuvres difficult. The solid teak deck, ruined by over
zealous sanding, had several fittings which weren’t in keeping with
the vessel’s character. However, Quico Despuig, having gained his
skills in England, new exactly what kind of boat he was dealing with: a
work of art created by G.L.Watson Co., one of the most celebrated
designers in yachting history. He was aware that any intervention on
Islander would necessarily have to be based on the original plans,
because there he would find the solution to the various problems that
might arise during restoration. Joel Despuig, Quico’s son, contacted
G.L.Watson & Co in Liverpool and received very welcome news. They
still had the original drawings of the boat and a wealth of
documentation. Father and son took the first available flight to
Liverpool, in search of Islander’s drawings.

In 1873 George Lennox Watson started the first yacht design business
in the world. He was a talented designer and enthusiastic about
innovative technology which he applied to his racing yachts, such as
composite construction (which was a novelty in that era). Watson
achieved international recognition with his challengers for the
America’s Cup, Thistle, Valkyrie II, Valkyrie III and Shamrock II, which
are some of his pioneering designs. His greatest and best known
creation however was Britannia, built for Edward VII, considered one
of the most flawless yachts of all times. George L. Watson formed part
of the generation of racing yacht designers who created a golden era
of yachting between the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the
twentieth century, together like minded naval genius’s such as the
American Nathanael Herreshoff and the Scotsman William Fife III.

PLÀ DEL SENYOR LLORENÇ S/N, APT DE CORREUS Nº89, , CADAQUÉS, 17488
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Watson died in 1904 but his company, G.L.Watson & Co., carried on
his legacy and designed some of the last steam ships for European
royalty. The company currently belongs to Dr. William Collier,
yachting world historian, who managed to preserve Watson’s valuable
documents and prevent them leaving the country.

Under the portrait of G.L.Watson which presides the board room and
surrounded by a series of objects belonging to the designer, the
G.L.Watson & Co naval engineer, white gloved, carefully unfolded the
original plans before the Despuig’s curious gaze. Many of these plans
were still rolled up in their original cardboard boxes. Some fifty plans
remain and have had to be given a chemical treatment to be able to
handle them and copy them. The fragile spread of plans revealed
vessel lines, sail plans and a wealth of construction details, all
necessary to appreciate how Islander was built. It is said that Watson
was more of a mathematical than artistic designer, and that the
beauty of his designs came from the pure forms and the rigging,
meant to obtain maximum efficiency. This was evident looking at the
drawings, set out across the table and the boat models on exhibit.
The offices still retain the spirit of the man who founded the company
at the age of 22 and who contributed to consolidating the long
tradition of racing yachts.

Islander inherited the G.L.Watson tradition. It is numbered as design

Nº570 but was originally proposal nº P44. The proposals were
designer drafts that not always came to fruition; while the design was
commissioned by a customer who bought the plans. The proposal
number and design do not coincide because previous proposals were
often used as a foundation for subsequent designs. We do know there
was another vessel in Maine built to the same design, the until
recently 55’ ketch Venture, launched at Cowes in 1924 for J. Samuel
White, unfortunately this was destroyed recently due to lack of funds.

Islander was built at the famous A.M. Dickie & Sons shipyard in
Tarbert, Scotland, for Archibald J. Barr of Kilmacolm, Inverclyde near
Glasgow, a “ship owner” by profession as is stated on his wife’s death
certificate. Construction began in May 1936 and the boat was
delivered in April 1937. According to the original specifications, the
auxiliary cruising ketch Nº570 has the following approximate
dimensions: length overall, 56’6 feet; length between perpendiculars,
49 feet; length on waterline, 41 feet; breadth extreme, 12’9 feet; and
depth from top of covering board to underside of wood keel
amidships, 8’9 feet. The specifications also indicate that Islander was
built following Lloyds special survey. As far as the materials are
concerned it is of Burmese teak, air dried for eight years. The frames
are of “truly grown British oak” spaced 21” apart and reinforced with
galvanised floors. The planking is 11/2” thick teak, the deck is also of
“first quality” Burmese teak, 21/2” by 11/2”, fastened directly onto the
beams with “heavy brass screws”. The quality of the materials makes
Islander extremely seaworthy, able to resist the most adverse

PLÀ DEL SENYOR LLORENÇ S/N, APT DE CORREUS Nº89, , CADAQUÉS, 17488
TEL: 972.25.89.76 / FAX:972.25.10.19 E-mail: info@drassanesdespuig.com
conditions. While researching Islander’s history Joel Despuig trawled
Lloyd’s archives, and found a list of Islander’s previous owners.
According to these archives A. J. Barr, the first owner, only held
Islander from 1937 to 1939 and subsequently from 1950 to 1954. In
between these dates it belonged to Sir Knowles Edge, an industrialist
from the north. In 1954 it was sold to Ronald Strauss, a financier from
the city who kept the boat in Southampton.

In 1964 Islander was bought by Tom Blackwell, a true sea lover,

retired captain of the merchant navy and an heir to the
Crosse&Blackwell empire. A solitary and retiring character, Captain
Blackwell had few friends, spoke little of his past or family, and loath
to sail in company. With Tom Blackwell at the helm, Islander fulfilled
its designer’s expectations, achieving a solo world navigation record.
Blackwell would circumnavigate the world, and after three years
return to Durban, South Africa, for repairs, maintenance and prepare
for the next voyage. Thus between 1968 and 1979 Blackwell solo
circumnavigated the globe twice but was unable to finish the third
attempt. Blackwell docked at Durban, with strong stomach pains; the
diagnosis was stomach cancer and a week to live unless he went
immediate surgery. The captain spent several weeks looking for a
purchaser for the yacht, finally thanks to a local skipper he managed
to sell it for 35.000$. The sale was negotiated on deck and they say
that when the testy old man rowed away from his beloved Islander,
he was unable to look back. With the money from the sale Blackwell
paid his medical fees and operation, gave part to charity and another
part to the Point Yacht Club, Durban, in thanks for the help received
from its members.

Following the boat’s trail, Joel Despuig contacted the South African
club. Richard Cox, the commodore, was able to confirm the club used
Blackwell’s legacy to finance the renovation of the restaurant, which
today bears the name the Islander room. Presiding over the room is
Islander’s original boom, donated by its then new owner and
underneath a plaque in memory of “round the world yachtsmen Tom
Blackwell, skipper of the ketch Islander, whose life’s voyage ended in
Durban on March 10th 1980, during his third solo circumnavigation.”

Islander’s new owner, the Durban lawyer John P. Mathews, recruited a

crew to sail the boat to New England for an extensive refit. But once
in the Canary Islands, the crew had a disagreement with Mathews
over the arranged payment. After waiting for two months and
unfulfilled promises, the captain and crew returned to South Africa
and a new crew came out from England to take over. Islander was
then taken as far as Barcelona, but there the owner completely
abandoned her. In 1981 Luis Garí discovered Islander half abandoned
and dishevelled in Astilleros Carabela and immediately purchased the
boat. In 1989 he sold her to Ricardo Albiñana, her present owner, who
has moored her at Barcelona’s Royal Yacht Club. During the last few
years Islander has once again been seen in the Mediterranean’s

PLÀ DEL SENYOR LLORENÇ S/N, APT DE CORREUS Nº89, , CADAQUÉS, 17488
TEL: 972.25.89.76 / FAX:972.25.10.19 E-mail: info@drassanesdespuig.com
agenda of classic regattas, winning a first and third place in the
Conde de Godo trophy in 2008 and 2007 respectively, and a second
place in the 2007 Forum regatta. In spite of its 72 years of history
Islander is still a competitive through bred.

Film producer Ricardo Albiñana, current owner of the Islander, is well

aware of the pedigree of his boat and considers this as a unique
master piece of European maritime heritage. Consequently Ricardo
hired the services of Drassanes Despuig and gave them the delicate
mission of restoring his yacht to it's original aspect. From the first
moment, Quico Despuig, the boat builder from Cadaqués (Costa
Brava), specialized in the restoration of classic boats and traditional
Mediterranean boats, knew there was only way to accomplish the
owners goal, and that was going back to the original drawings. Now,
with the original drawings and the technical specifications in his
hands, he can repair modifications that were mistakenly carried out
and restore the structural elements that were designed by George L.
Watson and his team for the vessel.

From January and till May of 2009, the Islander will be on dry dock at
Roses where it is going through the first phase of the restoration. The
restoration is being carried out in two phases so that the owner can
enjoy sailing the vessel during the months of good weather, from
spring to autumn. In this first phase Drassanes Despuig is focusing on
the structural aspects such as the stem, frames, floors and rigging.
They are changing 24 feet, out of the 51 foot Spruce mast, repairing
the damage caused at the bow due to excessive tension caused by
modern stays, recovering the original rigging, removing the winches
that are penalized at regattas, building and arranging the blocks to fit
the original rigging and restoring all the paint and varnish. In the next
phase they will change the deck and refit the interiors to it's original
drawings. The whole process will be carried out so that the Islander
can participate in the classic boat regattas organized in the waters of
Catalonia and Balearic Islands, shining like a pearl with all its
brilliance.

PLÀ DEL SENYOR LLORENÇ S/N, APT DE CORREUS Nº89, , CADAQUÉS, 17488
TEL: 972.25.89.76 / FAX:972.25.10.19 E-mail: info@drassanesdespuig.com