''Fox'' was a specially built

surfboat A surfboat (or surf boat) is an oar-driven boat designed to enter the ocean from the beach in heavy surf or severe waves. It is often used in lifesaving or rescue missions where the most expedient access to victims is directly from the beach. ...

to be rowed across the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

. ''Fox'' was custom built in 1896 by William A. Seaman at Seaman Sea Skiffs of

Branchport, New Jersey Long Branch is a beachside city in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 31,667, an increase of 948 (+3.1%) from the 2010 census count of 30,719, which in turn reflect ...

for

Frank Samuelsen and George Harbo Frank Samuelsen (26 February 1870 – 1946) and George Harbo (14 September 1864 – 1909) were Norwegian-Americans who in 1896 became the first people ever to row across an ocean. Their time record for rowing the North Atlantic Ocean was no ...

Highlands, New Jersey :''See also New York–New Jersey Highlands for the northwestern part of New Jersey.'' Highlands is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in northern Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A historic waterfront ...

. The boat was named ''Fox'' for the financial backer

Richard Kyle Fox Richard Kyle Fox (August 12, 1846 – November 15, 1922) was an Irish-born American sports journalist, publisher and promoter. Biography Fox was born on August 12, 1846, in Belfast, to James and Mary Fox (née Kyle). His first job was an offi ...

(1846-1922) owner of the "pink tabloid", ''

Police Gazette ''Police Gazette'', or some variation thereof has been the title of several magazines: * ''Police Gazette'' (Great Britain and Ireland), first published in 1772 *''Cleave's Weekly Police Gazette'', published between 1836 and 1838 in London. *'' Pen ...

''. William A. Seaman was well known for building the seaworthy ''Nauvoo'' surf boat. He built the ''Fox'' with watertight compartments and hand rails on the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

, for righting the boat if capsized at sea. This feature would be used at least once in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean during heavy seas. The original ''Fox'' is lost, but in 1975 a replica of the ''Fox'' was built by the Long Branch Ice Boat and Yacht Club (LBIBYC) of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

with the participation of Harold L. Seaman, son of the boat builder. As a youngster, Harold Seaman backed-up most of the rivets during construction of the original ''Fox''. At age 91, he provided a full set of plans reconstructed "from old photographs, shop records and memory, lines and measurements, correct within a fraction of an inch" .''Club History'' (Long Branch Ice Boat and Yacht Club)
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See also

References

Further reading