Brief History and Current Facilities of Sunderland Yacht Club

History:
Sailing has always played an important role on the Wear and is recognised as one of the early centres for the sport.
1837 saw the first of the Sunderland Borough Races which included all water based craft and preceded the formation of the first Yacht Club on the river.  This happened when in 1856 the Wear Yacht Club was formed. The Commodore in the first year was Lt. Col. The Right Hon. Earl Vane. The Club in the first year attracted one hundred and fifteen members with a subscription of one guinea.

1856 saw the first regatta which was held for the Gold Cup valued at eighty guineas and was held for boats over 40 tons TM (Thames Measurement) and was won by a cutter called Amazon (46 tons TM) owned by A.J.Young. The regatta was so important that J.Hall who had “Grip” (91 tons TM) built specially for the regatta but did not turn up. In the same year the Wear Yacht Club was granted an Admiralty Warrant and became the Royal Wear Yacht Club.  In 1866 the Sunderland Regatta was established with the Commodore E.T.Gourley, Mayor of Sunderland. This quickly developed into a very successful event lasting most of the week. In 1883 the event included yacht racing off Roker with classes for yachts 20 tons TM, 10 – 20 tons TM and under 10 tons TM. Other sailing classes were held for decked fishing boats and Pilot Cobbles.

With the build up of powered craft the “Royal Wear Yacht Club” saw a decline and a new club was formed in 1905 called “Sunderland Motor Boat and Yacht Club”.  This club then changed its name in 1912 to “Sunderland Yacht Club”.  The First World War saw the cessation of sailing from Sunderland Yacht Club and it was not formally started again until 1935.

From 1935 the Club developed by first building a clubhouse on the west side of the North Dock.  This was a brick built building and stood on the top of the old staiths retaining wall.  During the war the Club house was occupied by the navy and after the end of war the membership had dwindled to twenty so the clubhouse was sold to the Sea Scouts.
 
Sailing started again in 1946 from a new wooden building which was located at the base of the staiths retaining wall on the west side of the North Dock.

In 1957alterations to the North Dock entrance saw the Club relocated again to the site close to where we are now.  The clubhouse was again wooden which proved more than adequate through to the 1990s.

As the area was redeveloped the Club was rebuilt on the present site with the aid of funding from Tyne & Wear Development Corporation and the Lottery.

Location:
Sunderland Yacht Club is situated on the sea front at the root of the Old North Pier and overlooks the harbour entrance. The Club has easy access to the beach and sea via the Club ramp. Ample car parking is available in the public car park, which is situated adjacent to the Club.

Club Compound:
The Club has a large compound for storage of dinghies in the summer and lay up for cruisers in the winter. There is a grassed area within the compound that can be used for camping for open meetings together with hard standing for caravans.

Cruiser Moorings:
The Club owns and maintains over forty moorings in the North Dock Basin. Additional moorings are available in the Sunderland Marina. The great advantage Sunderland has over other marinas in the area is that the moorings can be used at all states of the tide without having to lock in and out.

Sailing Area:
Dinghy sailing takes place inside the harbour or out at sea in Whitburn Bay. Whitburn Bay has the advantage that it is quite well protected from the north and has ample room to set courses for both dinghies and cruisers. This enables the Club to set a wide variety of courses in most weather conditions.
The Club is ideally situated for access to other ports and anchorages on the north east coast and is used as a base for weekend cruising to Whitby in the south to Amble in the north.

Support Boats:
The Club owns four rigid inflatable safety boats and a heavier displacement cabin cruiser, which are used to support the racing events.

Club Boats:
The Club owns its own training boats for the use of the Club members; these include two Laser Pico's, a Topper and two Laser II's. These boats are primarily for training purposes.

Club House:
The Club House has all the necessary changing facilities and showers to support the sailing activities. The Club also has a fully licensed bar and comfortable lounge with panoramic views across the sailing area and up and down the coast for as far as the eye can see.
A well equipped galley is incorporated that provides catering for up to 100 people at one sitting if necessary and meals and snacks throughout the weekends and on most evenings in the summer months.
Jim Williamson

January 2006

Click here for directions to the Club

A Membership Application Form is now available in pdf document format, just click the link, complete and print the document then either email or post it back to the club. Membership Application Form

Club Rules updated 24 January 2007