The Whitehall was without a doubt the original coastal rowing boat. The Whitehall was the most famous and the fastest rowboat of the 19th century. The ports of Boston, New York, and San Francisco had hundreds of these slender, fast rowing boats in active use as water taxis, police patrol boats, and, of course, because [...]
Classic Whitehall Spirit® rowboats handcrafted by Whitehall Rowing & Sail are built to last over 100 years. They are vastly superior compared to any sailing rowboats currently available on the market. These rowboats are in a class of their own for design, craftsmanship, longevity, and for their ability to keep generations of their owners happy [...]
Moving ahead to the present day, the growing interest in fitness and clean, pollution free, outdoor recreation has created a growing resurgence of interest in Whitehall rowboats that are built lightweight, in state of the art materials, and fitted with efficient slide seat rowing/sculling gear. The largest builder of Whitehall rowboats in the word is [...]
Captain Smith, born in Boston in 1869, tells us in a 1943 ‘Rudder’ magazine article, the story of a deep water boarding house owner and ships pilot named Captain Alfred Sorenson. “This man usually got what he went after, whether he was in quest of sailors for his boarding-house or to pluck a fellow being [...]
Mystery surrounds the origins of the Whitehall rowboat. Early history of this distinctive, elegant, practical rowboat remains unclear. One thing for certain, in earlier times boat builders were often sailors and seafarers. Taught to be conservative by the unpredictable, dangerous nature of the sea, they stuck with the tried and true. As certain desirable qualities [...]