Biography

He was born in 1868.

Nicholson's first design of note was the Redwing

Redwing (keelboat)

The Redwing is a keelboat originally designed by Charles Ernest Nicholson in 1896 and first raced in 1897. In 1937 the class was redesigned by Nicholson. The minor changes were used to create the 1938 Redwing that can be seen racing both outside Bembridge Harbour and in Poole Harbour on the south...

class. The Bembridge

Bembridge

Bembridge is an affluent village and civil parish located on the easternmost point of the Isle of Wight. It had a population of 3,848 according to the 2001 census of the United Kingdom, leading to claims by residents that Bembridge is the largest village in England, and occasional claims that it is...

 sailing club met in October 1896 to agree the need for a shallow draughted yacht - to allow for the shoal waters of Bembridge Harbour - which could be sailed single-handed, to replace the expensive half racers. Nicholson designed the yacht in ten days, and by 1898 the fleet consisted of 16 boats, all built by the Camper & Nicholsons shipyard.

In the early 1900s Nicholson developed a new powered craft which would enable the owners to come from their "big-boats" before and after the competitions. Named the Gelyce class, the name derived from the combined first and last letter of their respective wives: Gertie, Lucy, and Constance.

In 1912, Nicholson introduced the 15mR design Istria with a Marconi rig, the first yacht in the world with a lightweight, laminated wood construction. This led to further developments and growing expertise in the use of lightweight materials which saw its fruition in the use of plywood

Plywood

Plywood is a type of manufactured timber made from thin sheets of wood veneer. It is one of the most widely used wood products. It is flexible, inexpensive, workable, re-usable, and can usually be locally manufactured...

 in deck construction. This ultimately led to arguably Nicholson's most beautiful sailing creation, the 1927 commissioned Vita (later Creole) was built on behalf of Alexander Smith Cochran

Alexander Smith Cochran

Alexander Smith Cochran was a wealthy manufacturer, sportsman and philathropist from Yonkers, New York.-Biography:He was the son of Willam F. Cochran and grandson of Alexander Smith, founder of the Alexander Smith Carpet Company....

.

He died on February 30, 1954.

Nicholson designs

• Dacia (5-rater, 1891)
• Marigold (cutter, 1892) - still sails
• Avel (cutter, 1897) - still sails as tender to Creole (see below)
• Black Swan (formerly Brynhyld, yawl, 1899) - still sails
• Merrymaid (handicap cruising yacht, 1904) - still sails
• Norland (schooner, 1904)
• Nyria (first large Bermuda cutter, 1906)
• Brynhild II (23mR, 1907)
• Orion (racing schooner, 1910) - still sails
• Istria
  Istria (yacht)
  Istria was a 15-metre class racing yacht designed by Charles Ernest Nicholson and built at the Camper & Nicholsons yard in 1912. She was the first yacht in the world with a lightweight, laminated wood construction and the first to feature a marconi topmast....
  
  (15mR, 1912)
• Marguerita (racing schooner, 1913)
• Pamela (15mR, 1913)
• Paula III (15mR, 1913)
• Shamrock IV
  Shamrock IV
  Shamrock IV was a yacht owned by Sir Thomas Lipton and designed by Charles Ernest Nicholson. She was the unsuccessful challenger in the 1920 America's Cup....
  
  (Universal Rule
  Universal Rule
  The Universal Rule determined a yachts eligibility to race in the America's Cup from 1914 to 1937. Ships built according to the rule reached their peak in the large J-class yachts....
  
   75-footer, 1914) for Sir Thomas Lipton
• Patricia (R-Class
  Universal Rule
  The Universal Rule determined a yachts eligibility to race in the America's Cup from 1914 to 1937. Ships built according to the rule reached their peak in the large J-class yachts....
  
  , 1921)
• Sylvia (Bermuda ketch, 1925) - still sails
• Creole (formerly Vira, three-mast staysail schooner, 1927) - still sails
• Astra (23mR, 1928) - still sails
• Candida (23mR, 1929) - still sails
• Shamrock V
  Shamrock V
  Shamrock V was the first British yacht to be built to the new J Class rule. It was commissioned by Sir Thomas Lipton for his fifth America’s Cup challenge.-Origins:...
  
  (J-class yacht
  J-class yacht
  The J-Class serves as a rating for large sailing yachts designed between 1930 and 1937. Reserved for a wealthy elite of yachtsmen, these boats were used to compete with the best sailing talents in three races of the America's Cup.-The 1930s:...
  
  , 1930) for Sir Thomas Lipton - still sails
• Patience (Bermuda cutter, 1931) - still sails
• Velsheda
  Velsheda (yacht)
  The J-class yacht Velsheda was designed by Charles Ernest Nicholson and built in 1933 by Camper and Nicholsons at Gosport, Hampshire. She was built for businessman William Lawrence Stephenson and named after his three daughters, Velma, Sheila and Daphne...
  
  (J-class yacht
  J-class yacht
  The J-Class serves as a rating for large sailing yachts designed between 1930 and 1937. Reserved for a wealthy elite of yachtsmen, these boats were used to compete with the best sailing talents in three races of the America's Cup.-The 1930s:...
  
  , 1933) - still sails
• Endeavour
  Endeavour (Yacht)
  Endeavour is a J-class yacht built for the 1934 America's Cup by Camper and Nicholson in Gosport, Portsmouth Harbour, England. She was built for Thomas Sopwith who used his aviation design expertise to ensure the yacht was the most advanced of its day with a steel hull and mast...
  
  (J-class yacht
  J-class yacht
  The J-Class serves as a rating for large sailing yachts designed between 1930 and 1937. Reserved for a wealthy elite of yachtsmen, these boats were used to compete with the best sailing talents in three races of the America's Cup.-The 1930s:...
  
  , 1934) - still sails
• Endeavour II (J-class yacht
  J-class yacht
  The J-Class serves as a rating for large sailing yachts designed between 1930 and 1937. Reserved for a wealthy elite of yachtsmen, these boats were used to compete with the best sailing talents in three races of the America's Cup.-The 1930s:...
  
  , 1936)
• Bloodhound
  Bloodhound (yacht)
  Bloodhound is a 19.2-metre ocean racing yacht. She was designed by Charles E. Nicholson and built by Camper and Nicholsons in 1936...
  
  (12mR, 1936) - still sails
• Oiseau de Feu (formerly Firebird X, offshore racing ketch, 1937) - still sails
• Trivia (12mR, 1937) - still sails