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In the early years of his adult life Watson was devoted to his company as well as close friends and family. He had little time for courting and it was not until his later years that Watson courted and married Ms
Lovibond of Putney, London. Their wedding was described as "a gathering of the most
246:(RNLI) with his boats becoming renowned for their seaworthiness and durable qualities. In 1887 Watson became chief consulting Naval Architect to the RNLI, a position which G.L. Watson & Co. Directors would fulfil through to the late 1960s.
163:, where through his friendship the local skipper William Mackie he developed his passion for yachts and resolved to make naval architecture his living. At the age of 16 Watson became an apprentice draughtsman at the shipyard of
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fashionable people in society". Only 18 months after their wedding, and shortly after the birth of his daughter, Ellen
Marjorie (Madge). Watson succumbed to "Coronary Asthma" and died on 12 November 1904, aged 53.
179:
as influences in yacht design. After practising at J&A Inglis, Shipbuilders, in 1873 (at the age of 22) Watson set out to found the world's first yacht design office dedicated to small craft. His first design,
614:, who went on to design the firm's largest and most famous luxury steam yachts for the social elite. Barnett also furthered Watson's lifeboat work successfully developing the world's first self-righting lifeboat.
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Watson designed 432 yachts, lifeboats and other vessels during his 32-year career, an output which averages one new build launched every 3.5 weeks. Of those he designed the following are particularly noteworthy.
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and is engaged in the design, restoration and replica builds of large yachts. The company still holds the original design archive which was temporarily housed in the
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Subsequently, the firm passed through the hands of three further managing directors, before a brief hiatus in the early 1990s. The firm is now based in
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Watson's yachts were met with a range of successes and competed in typically controversial Cup contests but never managed to win the trophy.
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Watson's successes on the proving ground of the Clyde soon attracted larger commissions from more high-profile clients such as the
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featured an unorthodox reverse bow which undoubtedly drew attention to the young designer. Successes followed with yachts such as
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which were built for a growing client base of wealthy Clyde industrialists. Notable examples include the Coats family of
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Barnett, J. R., Modern motor-Lifeboats of the Royal
National Lifeboat Institution, 1st Edition, Blackie, Glasgow, 1933
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228:
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Leather, J., 'Watson 120 Years of
Leadership in Yacht Design: The G.L. Watson Story', Classic Boat, January 1993.
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Leather, J., 'Watson 120 Years of
Leadership in Yacht Design: The G.L. Watson Story', Classic Boat, January 1993.
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220:
705:
Paterson, L., The Auld Mug: The Scots and the
America's Cup, 1st edition, Neil Wilson Publishing, Glasgow, 2007.
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As sole partner at the time of his death, Watson entrusted the company to the hands of his Chief
Draughstman
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Barnett, J.R., Smart, G.W, Stewart, J., Fifty Years of Yacht
Designing, University Press, Glasgow, 1924.
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remains the most successful racing yacht of all time, with a racing career spanning 43 years.
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668:, Badminton Library of Sports and Pastimes, Longmans, Green & Co, London, pp. 50–101
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During his training at Napier's yard Watson was at the early stages of using theories of
231:. Commissioning amongst others, four America's Cup challengers and the largest sailing
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497:. Built in 1893, she and had a long and successful career passing to his son
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Irving, J., The Kings
Britannia, Seeley Service & Co. Ltd, London, 1937.
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143:, and grandson of Sir Timothy Burstall, engineer and entrant at the 1829
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J. R. Barnett, Last Will and
Testament, National Archives of Scotland.
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Watson, G.L., Transactions of the Institute of Naval Architects, 1890.
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for the Scottish syndicate headed by Sir James Bell, two yachts named
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Amongst his work in yacht designs Watson designed extensively for the
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was long running and manifested itself in four cup challengers; the
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Cameron, I., Riders of the Storm, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2002
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As a young boy in the late 1850s Watson often spent holidays at
585:(Joseph M. Soper, 1893) on the Clyde. Both the large cutters,
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Watson's most famous design was commissioned and raced by
131:(30 October 1851 – 12 November 1904) was a Scottish
788:
G.L. Watson – The Art & Science of Yacht Design
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139:, son of Thomas Lennox Watson, a doctor at the
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200:of the famous Scots-Canadian shipping line.
650:RINA Membership Applications, RINA Archive
31:
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593:were broken up following their defeats.
581:was sunk in a collision with the cutter
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37:Portrait from an Ogden's Cigarette Card
7:
914:20th-century Scottish businesspeople
909:19th-century Scottish businesspeople
16:Scottish naval architect (1851–1904)
244:Royal National Lifeboat Institution
808:Life-boat Design & Development
14:
472:(first class linear cutter, 1900)
454:(first class linear cutter, 1896)
361:(90-ton first class cutter, 1880)
842:. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
838:Dictionary of National Biography
662:"The Evolution of Yacht Design"
478:(first class linear yawl, 1900)
495:Albert Edward, Prince of Wales
1:
879:America's Cup yacht designers
828:"Watson, George Lennox"
825:Fryer, Sydney Ernest (1912).
810:. David & Charles Press.
660:George Lennox Watson (1894),
516:Watson's involvement in the
409:Elfin' (7 ton Lugger, 1891)
930:
854:G.L. Watson & Co. Ltd.
229:Wilhelm II, German Emperor
904:Scottish company founders
716:"The yacht Valkyrie sunk"
432:(first class rater, 1893)
387:(First class rater, 1887)
221:Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing
122:
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30:
889:British naval architects
575:Kaiser Willem of Germany
466:(A-class schooner, 1899)
884:British yacht designers
534:for Sir Thomas Lipton.
530:for Lord Dunraven, and
460:(A-class schoner, 1898)
141:Glasgow Royal Infirmary
894:Engineers from Glasgow
484:(SCYC 90-footer, 1901)
448:(SCYC 90-footer, 1895)
440:(SCYC 85-footer, 1893)
165:Robert Napier and Sons
806:Eric. C. Fry (1975).
785:Martin Black (2012).
98:G.L. Watson & Co.
791:. Peggy Bawn Press.
612:James Rennie Barnett
399:(7 ton cutter, 1890)
393:(3 ton cutter, 1887)
373:(5 ton cutter, 1883)
367:(5 ton cutter, 1883)
343:(8-ton cutter, 1871)
129:George Lennox Watson
25:George Lennox Watson
899:Scottish architects
744:The Times, May 1902
511:
817:978-0-7153-6793-3
798:978-0-9571123-0-8
666:Yachting Volume I
512:The America's Cup
355:(10-tonner, 1879)
217:Rothschild family
213:Sir Thomas Lipton
205:Vanderbilt family
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349:(5-tonner, 1876)
209:Earl of Dunraven
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874:1904 deaths
869:1851 births
833:Lee, Sidney
591:Shamrock II
579:Valkyrie II
563:Shamrock II
548:Valkyrie II
532:Shamrock II
482:Shamrock II
437:Valkyrie II
112:Shamrock II
75:Nationality
863:Categories
629:References
316:Lysistrata
151:Early life
135:. Born in
83:Occupation
62:1904-11-13
619:Liverpool
505:Britannia
489:Britannia
464:Gleniffer
452:Meteor II
429:Britannia
310:Margarita
292:Mayflower
108:Britannia
86:Architect
583:Satanita
528:Valkyrie
476:Sybarita
359:Vanduara
304:Latharna
280:Vanduara
273:Hermione
233:schooner
196:and the
157:Inverkip
95:Practice
835:(ed.).
571:Thistle
540:Thistle
523:Thistle
458:Rainbow
391:Samovar
384:Thistle
328:Warrior
237:Rainbow
194:Paisley
159:on the
137:Glasgow
116:Rainbow
78:British
69:Glasgow
60: (
49:Glasgow
814:
795:
606:Legacy
589:&
565:(1901)
559:(1895)
551:(1893)
543:(1887)
470:Kariad
330:(1904)
324:(1902)
322:Triton
318:(1900)
312:(1899)
306:(1897)
300:(1896)
294:(1896)
288:(1896)
282:(1895)
276:(1891)
268:(1891)
262:(1891)
215:, the
171:Career
103:Design
831:. In
719:(PDF)
397:Tessa
377:Doris
371:Leila
353:Madge
298:Nahma
286:Maria
266:Foros
190:Verve
812:ISBN
793:ISBN
503:HMY
421:Rona
403:Dora
365:Iris
347:Vril
260:Zara
227:and
188:and
186:Vril
106:HMY
55:Died
43:Born
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