Resources &
Catboat Links
The CBA offers links to a wide variety of specialized resources for
single-masted and gaff-rigged sailors.
Daily Tide & Current
Predictions Bill Hoover
writes that tide and current predictions are available for thousands of
locations in North and Central America as available from NOAA and CHS.
The
Chesapeake Catboat Association Website is a fine resource link for
catboaters on the Bay and PA. Commodore Bill Hoover
writes that the association is growing strong and their website is a great to
allow folks elsewhere to check up on the current doings of the CCBA.
www.chesapeakecatboats.org
Catboat
ListSERV is a resource for
sharing information on a larger scale.
Sign up to receive or broadcast information.
Barnegat Bay A-Cats is a resource link for A catboaters. Gary
Jobson and Roy Wilkins have published a wonderful new book on the history of the
A-Cats.
http://www.barnegatbayacat.com/
Marine
Weather Information
As a positive spin-off to the recent problems with Hurricane
Floyd, several CBA LISTSERV members including Tom Sharp and Henry Depew have
suggested (a) an article for the next issue of the CBA bulletin and/or (b) some
additions to the CBA web page, of all the weather URLs that everyone was passing
around with the idea of helping everyone track Floyd.
Hurricanes or no, these are useful sites for keeping track of
and trying to second-guess the weather, and for navigation in unfamiliar
harbors.
Comments, additions or corrections, please contact:
webmaster@catboats.org
The Catboat Book,
edited by John E. Leavens and co-published by the Catboat Association and International
Marine. Sailing experts and CBA members offer tips and their insight on the unique skills
necessary for catboat sailing, racing, design and restoration. The final chapter, "A
CAT ALBUM" is a compendium of over 50 pages of priceless catboat photos
from years gone by.
The Catoat, and how to Sail Her, another CBA publication, offers in-depth hands on
expertise on vital areas of catboat sailing, handling and anchorage. It is the defining
text on this unique sailing craft. A "must-have" text for novice catboaters and
experts, alike.
Peter Vermilya, of the Mystic Seaport, CBA member and catboat expert offers a fine
digest of excellent resources for the new, prospective or seasoned catboat enthusiast.
Drawing upon his vast knowledge of small crafts and sailing experiences. The late
John E. Leavens, a founding member, offers his insight and opening remarks in the Preface.
Three Daniel Crosby cats off Branford, CT, circa
1913-1914
SEAHORSE SEA MEW& SEA HOUND
From John Killam Murphy March, 1963
The catboat is uniquely American. The type evolved as a working boat certainly before
1850and possibly as far back as the colonial era. It reached its highest perfection of
form by 1900.
The evolution of the cat proceeded at an accelerated pace in the last half of the
nineteenth century as new uses came into being. For a few brief decades, it was popular as
a racing boat until the beginning of class racing and the introduction of new and
different racing hulls in the 1890's. The catboat, with its huge beam and stubby mast set
well forward, was a familiar sight in every harbor from Cape May, New Jersey to Cape Ann,
Massachusetts.
Some other related web sites worth looking at for additional information on Catboats,
sailing, New England coastal maritime history:
The Martha's Vineyard Historical
Society's "Save the VANITY" Campaign.
Help preserve a part of the Catboat
Association's heritage!
The New England Beetle Cat Boat Association is organized to promote and
encourage the sailing and racing of the 75-year old wooden Beetle Cat. A
class championship is held every year and a regular newsletter reports on all
aspects of Beetle Cat activity. For more information about joining the
NEBCA, please contact Roy Terwilliger at lcleaves@capecod.net
MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM is a non-profit museum
whose mission is to tell the story of America and the Sea. Founded in 1929, the
Museum has become the largest institution of its kind, with over 22,000 members, 450,000
annual visitors, and more than two million items in the collection.
MYSTIC
SEAPORT
& the Catboat Breck
Marshall
Peabody-Essex Museum located
in Salem, MA tells a story of what it was like for New England merchants, sailors and
captains of industry during the halcyon days of the clipper ship. Rich in both art work
and sculpture from around the world, the P-E Museum is a wonderful resource for any
maritime historian.
WoodenBoat magazine,
school and store, located in Brooklin, ME is the Mecca of New England
boating & sailing enthusiasts. From design
reviews to bi-monthly new launchings of hand-made wooden
boats, WB is the one asset most builders and sailors turn to first.
The Beetle Cat Home Page
The Beetle Cat is a 12 foot, gaff rigged, wooden sailboat first built in 1921 by the
Beetle family of New Bedford, Massachusetts. Beetle, Inc., located in South Dartmouth,
Massachusetts, is now the sole builder of Beetle Cat boats.
Wood
& Water of Wickford (RI), Inc. offers quality wood and nautical
products & hard-to-find hardware, fittings and lumber for traditional
catboats. There is also an on-site sawmill.
The Woodpussy Catboat Renaissance 
