Florida Yacht Club
Encyclopedia
The Florida Yacht Club is a private country
and yacht club
in Jacksonville
, Florida
, U.S. It is the oldest social club in Jacksonville, and is the fourth oldest surviving yacht club in the U.S. It was founded in downtown Jacksonville in 1877, and moved to its present location in the Ortega
neighborhood in 1928.
was the driving force behind the creation of a club promoting boating
and water sports in Jacksonville. Astor felt that the broad and slow St. Johns River
was a perfect location for boating, though he was the only person in Jacksonville to actually own a yacht
at the time. The original clubhouse was constructed at the end of Market Street in downtown Jacksonville, and cost $3,500, to which Astor contributed $500. The original Florida Yacht Club building was a large two-story edifice, with the second floor being used for gatherings and dances
. Astor served as the club's first "Commodore".
The original building burned down in the Great Fire of 1901
. The club moved to a temporary clubhouse in the Riverside neighborhood, before relocating to a new dedicated facility on Willow Branch Creek in 1907. In 1928 the Florida Yacht Club moved to its present building in Jacksonville's Ortega
neighborhood. The current clubhouse was designed in the Mediterranean Revival style and cost $90,000.
Country club
A country club is a private club, often with a closed membership, that typically offers a variety of recreational sports facilities and is located in city outskirts or rural areas. Activities may include, for example, any of golf, tennis, swimming or polo...
and yacht club
Yacht club
A yacht club is a sports club specifically related to sailing and yachting.-Description:Yacht Clubs are mostly located by the sea, although there are some that have been established at a lake or riverside locations...
in Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, U.S. It is the oldest social club in Jacksonville, and is the fourth oldest surviving yacht club in the U.S. It was founded in downtown Jacksonville in 1877, and moved to its present location in the Ortega
Ortega, Jacksonville, Florida
Ortega is a neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida. It is located south of downtown Jacksonville on a peninsula off the western bank of the St. Johns River. It is one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Jacksonville and is among the wealthiest in the United States, and is the location of many...
neighborhood in 1928.
History
The Florida Yacht Club was established by seventeen charter members in 1877. New York businessman William Backhouse Astor, Jr.William Backhouse Astor, Jr.
William Backhouse Astor, Jr. was a businessman and a member of the prominent Astor family.He was the ancestor of the U.S. branch of the Astor family, which came to an end in the male line at the end of the 20th century....
was the driving force behind the creation of a club promoting boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
and water sports in Jacksonville. Astor felt that the broad and slow St. Johns River
St. Johns River
The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At long, it winds through or borders twelve counties, three of which are the state's largest. The drop in elevation from the headwaters to the mouth is less than ;...
was a perfect location for boating, though he was the only person in Jacksonville to actually own a yacht
Yacht
A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...
at the time. The original clubhouse was constructed at the end of Market Street in downtown Jacksonville, and cost $3,500, to which Astor contributed $500. The original Florida Yacht Club building was a large two-story edifice, with the second floor being used for gatherings and dances
Dance party
A dance party is a social gathering where dancing is the primary activity. Some dance parties are held in a casual setting and open to the public, such as a rave, or those held in nightclubs and discothèques...
. Astor served as the club's first "Commodore".
The original building burned down in the Great Fire of 1901
Great Fire of 1901
The Great Fire of 1901 in Jacksonville, Florida was one of the worst disasters in Florida history and the largest urban fire in the Southeast. It was similar in scale and destruction to the 1871 Great Chicago Fire.-Origin:...
. The club moved to a temporary clubhouse in the Riverside neighborhood, before relocating to a new dedicated facility on Willow Branch Creek in 1907. In 1928 the Florida Yacht Club moved to its present building in Jacksonville's Ortega
Ortega, Jacksonville, Florida
Ortega is a neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida. It is located south of downtown Jacksonville on a peninsula off the western bank of the St. Johns River. It is one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Jacksonville and is among the wealthiest in the United States, and is the location of many...
neighborhood. The current clubhouse was designed in the Mediterranean Revival style and cost $90,000.