shipbuilders Harlan
and Hollingsworth, the Rosinco (U.S. #214160) was
put to sea as Georgiana III. The vessel would, in
fact, change hands twice before becoming the Rosinco.
Wilmington
had the distinction of being the "cradle" of iron shipbuilding,
and Harlan and Hollingsworth became pioneer builders
of iron and, later, steel ships in the United
States. Indeed,
competition in the region was intense. Noting similarities
with the unsurpassed iron ship production along Scotland
's Clyde River in the latter nineteenth-century, maritime
historian David Tyler once referred to the Delaware
River as the "American
Clyde."
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The Rosinco sailing under its original name, Georgiana
III. |
Georiana
III was built for William G. Coxe, president of Harlan
and Hollingsworth, and designed chiefly by the company's
naval architect, A.M. Main. The vessel's overall length was
95 feet 2 ½ inches. Incorporating the "desirable and
practical features of the commercial vessel, the destroyer,
and the old steam yacht," the vessel marked a decided transition
from traditional motor yacht construction.
In
December 1916, The Motor Boat magazine reviewed
the vessel and enthusiastically announced that " Georgiana
III is a real boat." Lloyd's Register of American
Yachts reported the remainder of the vessel's principal dimensions
as: length waterline, 93 feet; beam, 15 feet 3 inches; draft,
5 feet 6 inches; gross tonnage, 82 tons; net tonnage, 44
tons.
These
dimensions indicate that Georgiana III possessed
a high length to beam ratio, the purpose of which was to
increase the vessel's speed. Credited with collaborating
on the vessel's design, Coxe expressly desired maximum strength
and safety, with a minimum of ballast, to achieve "necessary speed, stability,
comfort, etc." Her owner's desire for a substantial
vessel helped usher in a new era of American power boating.
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