College Boat Club of the University of Pennsylvania is the

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...

program for

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...

Rowing, located in the Madeira Shell House at #11 Boathouse Row on the historic

Boathouse Row Boathouse Row is a historic site located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on the east bank of the Schuylkill River just north of the Fairmount Water Works and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It consists of a row of 15 boathouses housing social and ro ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Its membership consists entirely of past and present rowers of the University of Pennsylvania. It hosts both heavyweight and lightweight varsity men's teams and an openweight varsity women's team. The Wharton Crew Team, however, rows out of

Bachelors Barge Club Bachelors Barge Club is an amateur rowing club located at #6 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest continuously operating boathouse in the United States. It went through renovations as part o ...

at # 6 Boathouse Row. College Boat Club was founded in 1872 by the school's students, shortly after the school's campus was relocated from Center City to

West Philadelphia West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...

. College Boat Club was admitted to the

Schuylkill Navy The Schuylkill Navy is an association of amateur rowing (sport), rowing clubs of Philadelphia. Founded in 1858, it is the oldest amateur athletic governing body in the United States. The member clubs are all on the Schuylkill River where it flows ...

in 1875.

History

University Barge Club

The history of rowing at the

began in 1854 with the foundation of the

University Barge Club University Barge Club of Philadelphia (also known as UBC) is an amateur rowing club located at #7 in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National H ...

Founding of College Boat Club

In 1872, University of Pennsylvania ("Penn") students founded the College Barge Club to provide an alternative to the school's first boat club, the

, and to focus on preparing students for intercollegiate competitions. The Club later changed its name from College Barge Club to College Boat Club. In the club's first year, it had only 20 members, mostly sophomores from the university's graduating Class of 1875. At first, the Club rowed out of the

Quaker City Barge Club Fairmount Rowing Association is an amateur rowing club, founded in 1877. The facility, located at #2 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Fairmount originally ...

. However, College Boat Club grew quickly and was able to build its own boathouse in 1874. In 1877, sophomores from College Boat Club were victorious against seniors rowing out of

. By 1879, the club was the base for most Penn crews, and members were rowing in intercollegiate competitions. In 1893, College Boat Club opened membership to alumni as well as enrolled students. In 1904, the Club admitted alumni crews as far back as 1899. Currently, membership for alumni is limited to former varsity rowers.

Competitions

The crews of College Boat Club compete in several regattas throughout the rowing season. The three most competitive regattas are the Eastern Association of Rowing College (EARC) Championship, the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) Championship, and the

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thr ...

. As of 1997, the women's crews compete in the

NCAA Division I Rowing Championship The NCAA Division I Rowing Championship is a rowing championship held by the NCAA for Division I women's heavyweight (or openweight) collegiate crews. The inaugural National Championship was held in 1997 for the top 16 crews in the country, loca ...

instead of the IRAs.

EARC Championship (Eastern Sprints)

The Penn heavyweight men's eight has won the

Eastern Sprints The Eastern Sprints is the annual rowing championship for the men's Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges (EARC). (Since 1974, the "Women's Eastern Sprints" has been held as the annual championship for the Eastern Association of Women's Rowing Co ...

six times: 1955, 1962 (tied with

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

), 1986, 1991, 1996, and 1998. The lightweight men's eight has won 5 times: 1951, 1952, 1955, 1976, and 2019.

IRA Championship

Penn, along with

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

and

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

, founded the

Intercollegiate Rowing Association The Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) governs intercollegiate rowing between varsity men's heavyweight, men's lightweight, and women's lightweight rowing programs across the United States, while the NCAA fulfills this role for women's ope ...

and competes annually in the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship, which is the most competitive race in American collegiate rowing. In 2004, Penn finished fourth in the grand final for the Men's Freshman Four w/Cox and fifth in the Men's Open Four w/Cox grand final. In 2005, Penn finished third in the Men's Varsity Lightweight Eight and fourth in the Men's Freshman Eight. In 2006, the Men's Freshman Eight finished third. In 2017 and 2019, the Men’s Varsity Lightweight 8 finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively. In 2008, the Men's Open Four qualified for the grand final, but finished sixth. The last time that the Penn won the Ivy League Championship at IRAs was 1992, when Penn tied Dartmouth. Penn has won the Ivy League Championship eight additional times in 1898, 1899, 1900, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, and 1989.

Henley Royal Regatta

Penn Crew has competed at the prestigious

. In 1994, College Boat Club won the

Ladies' Challenge Plate The Ladies' Challenge Plate is one of the events at Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. Crews of men's eight-oared boats below the standard of the Grand Challenge Cup can enter, although international standard ...

. In 1991, Penn won the

Thames Challenge Cup The Thames Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's eights at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from a single rowing club A rowing club is a club for people interested ...

. In 1955, Penn won the most prestigious of all prizes at Henley, the

Grand Challenge Cup The Grand Challenge Cup is a rowing competition for men's eights. It is the oldest and best-known event at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowin ...

. Penn also won the

in 1951 and 1952.

National Collegiate Rowing Championship

The men's team won the

National Collegiate Rowing Championship The now defunct National Collegiate Rowing Championship was a quasi-official national championship for men's college rowing (United States), collegiate rowing, held in Cincinnati, Ohio, between 1982 and 1996. It pitted the winners of the Eastern Sp ...

in 1991.

1955 crew

The 1955 Men's Heavyweight 8, coached by

Joe Burk Joseph William Burk (January 19, 1914 – January 13, 2008) was an American oarsman and coach. Raised in Delanco Township, New Jersey, he graduated from Moorestown High School in 1930. At the University of Pennsylvania, Burk rowed in ...

, won at the

Henley Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the three ...

, and the crew's speed drew attention and acclaim internationally. One source highlights the accolades as follows:

Coaching staff

Penn has enjoyed the tutelage of many of the best rowing coaches of all time including Rusty Callow,

, Ted Nash, Stan Bergman, Brendan Cunningham, and Hudson Peters.

Ted Nash

In 2004, former Penn coach Ted Nash became the first person to participate in 10 Olympic games as either an athlete or coach when he was appointed as a coach on the 2004 team in Athens. This is a record for any member of any US Olympic team, regardless of event or sport. During his first games at the 1960 Rome Olympics, Nash was on the gold medal-winning four without coxswain boat. In 2008 he showed no signs of slowing down as made it 11 by returning again to the Olympic stage in Beijing as coach of the heavyweight men's coxless pair.

Stan Bergman

Stan Bergman coached the Men's Heavyweight Rowing Program to numerous championships at all levels. He is held in extraordinary regard in the rowing community, and beyond, for his success with his crews on and off the water.

Women

* Head Coach of Women's Crew: Wesley Ng * Head Coach of Women's Crew Emeritus/Quaker Rowing Camp Director: Michael "Touchdown" Lane

Heavyweight men

* Head Coach: Albert “Al” Monte * Assistant Coaches: Phil Brunner, Matt Carmody * Boatman: Andrew Blum * Boatman Emeritus: Donald “Shep” Shepard

Lightweight men

* Head Coach: Colin Farrell Captain(s): Sam Ward and Zach Howell

Gallery

File:College72.png, College Boat Club,
#11

, in 1972. File:CollegeBC1904.jpeg, Crew launching shell of College Boat Club boathouse in 1904.

Prominent members

* Ted A. Nash (former Penn Coach) -

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

(gold medal) &

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

(bronze medal) US Olympic Teams and US Olympic Coach from 1968 to 2008 * Louis Lombardi, Jr., '15 - 2010 US Junior Team, 2014–15 US U23 Teams, 2016 US Senior Team. American actor, songwriter and record producer * John A. Pescatore, '86 -

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

(bronze medal) & 1992 US Olympic Teams * Hugh Matheson, '84 - 1972, 1976 & 1980 Great Britain Olympic Teams (silver medal) *James E. Moroney III '75 - 1972 & 1976 US Olympic Teams *

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

, '73 - American singer, songwriter and record producer *Luther H. Jones, '72 - 1968 & 1972 US Olympic Teams *John Hartigan, '63 - 1968 & 1976 US Olympic Teams *

Merrill McPeak Merrill Anthony "Tony" McPeak (born January 9, 1936) is a retired 4-star general in the United States Air Force whose final assignment before retirement was as the 14th Chief of Staff of the Air Force from 1990 to 1994. In 1993, McPeak served a ...

, '58 - American politician and Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force * Harry Parker, '57 - 1960 US Olympic Team and US Olympic Coach 1964-1984 *

John B. Kelly Jr. John Brenden "Jack" Kelly Jr. (May 24, 1927 – March 2, 1985), also known as Kell Kelly, was an American athlete, an accomplished rower, a four-time Olympian, and an Olympic medal winner. He was the son of triple Olympic gold medal winner Jac ...

, '50 - 1948, 1952, 1956 & 1960 US Olympic Teams

Rowers with one Olympic team appearance

These include:

References

External links

*
College Boat Club
on wikimapia.org {{Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges Clubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania Buildings and structures in Philadelphia Cultural infrastructure completed in 1874 Gothic Revival architecture in Pennsylvania Boathouse Row Schuylkill Navy Sports clubs established in 1872 1872 establishments in Pennsylvania Philadelphia Register of Historic Places Historic district contributing properties in Pennsylvania Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges Boathouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania