Although yacht racing in America began informally with the Dutch burghers of New Amsterdam, the first recorded race featured John Cox Stevens's Wave defeating John Cushing's Sylph in 1835. Stevens, a wealthy New Jersey real estate broker and sports promoter, spearheaded the organization of the New York Yacht Club in 1844. As commodore of the New York Yacht Club, he organized a syndicate of five other club members that commissioned William H. Brown in 1850 to construct a yacht "to race against the best the British had to offer." Following the design by George Steers, Brown finished America in 1851, in time for Stevens to accept an invitation from the Royal Yacht Squadron to enter its race around the Isle of Wight. Pitted against seventeen seasoned British boats, America started poorly but finished with a commanding lead and won the hundred-guinea cup offered by the Royal Yacht Squadron. In.....
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