The ''Magic'' was a racing

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

, of the

New York Yacht Club The New York Yacht Club (NYYC) is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. ...

. She was the first American defender during the

1870 America's Cup The 1870 America's Cup was the first America's Cup competition to be hosted in the United States, and the first "America's Cup" due to the trophy being renamed from the 100 Guineas Cup of 1851. It was the first competition after the founding of t ...

hosted in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

against the 1st British challenger ''Cambria,'' representing the

Royal Thames Yacht Club The Royal Thames Yacht Club (RTYC) is the oldest continuously operating yacht club in the world, and the oldest yacht club in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are located at 60 Knightsbridge, London, England, overlooking Hyde Park. The clu ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The ''Magic,'' had 19 owners. Her last owner modified her into a

pilot boat A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship ...

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

. In 1922, during a hurricane, she was wrecked on the beach in Key West.

Design

The ''Magic,'' was built by T. Byerly & Son of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

in 1857 for Captain Richard Fanning Loper as a sloop. Loper did the original model and design for his boat. She was christened the ''Madgie.'' She was rebuilt several times, In 1859, Loper modified the ''Madgie'' from a sloop to a schooner and renamed her ''Magic''. In 1860, Loper modified Magic by lengthening her bow. He then sold the ''Magic'' in 1864, to William H. McVickar of the New York Yacht Club.

Yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

sman George L. Lorillard bought the ''Magic,'' late in 1866 and sold her to H. W. Gray. In 1869, he sold her to

Franklin Osgood Franklin Osgood (December 24, 1828January 13, 1888) was a 19th-century businessman and yachtsman. He was an experienced yachtsman having sailed for more than 23 years. He was owner and manager of the racing yachts Widgeon (pilot boat), ''Widgeon ...

. In 1869, the ''Magic,'' was taken to City Island where she was completely rebuilt by the

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

David Carll. Carll lengthened and widened the ''Magic,'' with increased

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

; and converted her into a

centerboard A centreboard or centerboard (US) is a retractable hull appendage which pivots out of a slot in the hull of a sailboat, known as a ''centreboard trunk'' (UK) or ''centerboard case'' (US). The retractability allows the centreboard to be raised t ...

schooner yacht for Franklin Osgood.

Operational history

The schooner ''Magic'' represented the

and was the smallest sailboat in the international

competition. The first official challenge took place on August 8, 1870, in

New York Harbor New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay, ...

and was won by Franklin Osgood's American yacht ''Magic''. She beat 17 competitors, including the English yacht ''Cambria'' and the yachts ''Dauntless,'' ''Idler,'' ''Fleetwing,'' ''Phantom,'' ''America'' and others. Andrew J. Comstock was captain of the Magic and had a stateroom in the forward section of the boat. The course of the race was from the Club House, Staten Island, N.Y. around the S.W. Spit to and the light ship off Sandy Hook and back, 40 miles. Seventeen American and the English yacht Cambria started at 11.21 A. M. The race was won by ''Magic'', which rounded the home stake boat in 3 hours, 33 minutes, 54 seconds. The Yachts ''Tidal Wave'', ''Widgeon'', and ''Alarm'' failed to complete the race and were ruled out. On October 11, 1870, the ''Magic'' was sold by Franklin Osgood to Lester Wallack, for $16,500. Osgood bought her back but sold her to Rufus Hatch in 1873. In 1874, she was purchased by William T. Garner, who kept her until 1876, when Osgood bought her back for a third time. In 1879, she was bought by Francis M. Weld of Boston, who sold her to Thurston N. McKay after owning for only two years. McKay kept her for three years and then she went back to the Weld family in 1885. She was later bought by Augustus W. Mott who kept her for ten years, when John S. Clarke & Bros., of Pittsburg bought her in 1898. He in turn sold her to a

group that modified her as a

. On February 1, 1908, the Magic sank when she was racing into port and was capsized at Key West. Her owner was John Lowe Jr. The ''Magic'' had 19 owners, including the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

, which used her as a supply craft during the 1898

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

End of service

On May 3, 1922, the schooner ''Magic,'' went ashore on the beach in the bay at Key West when she received damage during a hurricane. Her owner, John Lowe Jr., had the boat moved offshore and destroyed with explosives.

References

External links

City Island Nautical Museum

THE STORY OF MAGIC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic (yacht) 1857 ships Ships built in New York City America's Cup challengers Yachts of New York Yacht Club members Individual sailing vessels 1870 in American sports 1870 in sailing America's Cup regattas