Yachting and Yachtbuilding
The first recorded Clyde racing yacht, a 46-ton cutter, was built by Scotts of Greenock in 1803, and the great Scottish yacht designer William Fyfe did not start designing yachts until 1807. The first yacht club on the Clyde was the Northern Yacht Club, which appeared in 1824 and received its Royal Charter in 1831. The club was founded to organise and encourage the sport, and by 1825 Scottish and Irish clubs were racing against each other on the Clyde. However, yachting and yacht building didn't really take off until the middle of the 19th century.
The Clyde became famous worldwide for its significant contribution to yachting and yachtbuilding and was the home of many notable designers: William Fife III; Alfred Mylne; G L Watson; E McGruer; David Boyd. It was also the home of many famous yacht yards.
Robertson's Yard started repairing boats in a small workshop at Sandbank in 1876, and went on to become one of the foremost wooden boat builders on the Clyde. The 'golden years' of Robertson's yard were in the early 20th century when they started building classic 12- and 15-metre racing yachts. More than 55 boats were built by Robertson's in preparation for the First World War and the yard remained busy even during the Great Depression in the 1930s, as many wealthy businessmen developed a passion for yacht racing on the Clyde. During World War II the yard was devoted to Admiralty work, producing large high speed Fairmile Marine Motor Bots (MTB's and MGB's). After the war the yard built the successful one-class Loch Longs and two David Boyd designed 12-metre challengers for the America's Cup: Sceptre (1958) and Sovereign (1964). Due to difficult business conditions in 1965 the yard was turned over to GRP production work (mainly Pipers and Etchells) until it closed in 1980. During its 104 year history, Robertson's Yard built 500 boats, many of which are still sailing today.
Read more about this topic: River Clyde