"Volunteer" was the victorious American defender of the seventh America's Cup

America's Cup

The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...

 race in 1887 against Scottish challenger "Thistle

Thistle (yacht)

Thistle was the unsuccessful Scottish challenger of the seventh America's Cup in 1887 against American defender Volunteer.-Design:The cutter Thistle was designed by George Lennox Watson, with interiors by his brother Thomas Lennox Watson, and built at the D&W Henderson shipyard in Partick on the...

".

Design

"Volunteer," a centerboard compromise sloop

Sloop

A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....

, was designed by Edward Burgess

Edward Burgess

Edward Burgess was an American yacht designer, born June 30, 1848 in West Sandwich, Massachusetts.Edward is fifth son of Benjamin Franklin Burgess and Cordelia Williams Ellis. The Burgess family were merchants who made their money in the West Indies trade and lost it in 1879...

 and built by Pusey & Jones Shipbuilding Company at Wilmington, Delaware

Wilmington, Delaware

Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...

 in 1887 for owner General Charles J. Paine

Charles Jackson Paine

Charles Jackson Paine was an American railroad executive, soldier, and yachtsman who was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

 of the New York Yacht Club

New York Yacht Club

The New York Yacht Club is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. The organization has over 3,000 members as of 2011. ...

.

"Volunteer" had an all-steel frame and hull, with a deck of white pine.

Career

"Volunteer" easily beat the 1886 America's Cup defender "Mayflower

Mayflower (yacht)

Mayflower was the victorious U.S. defender of the sixth America's Cup in 1886 against English challenger Galatea.-Design:The sloop Mayflower was the second America's Cup defender designed by Edward "Ned " Burgess, built by George Lawley & Son and launched in 1886 for owner General Charles J. Paine...

" during the defender trials for the 1887 America's Cup and won both Cup races on September 27 and 30, 1887, against Thistle

Thistle (yacht)

Thistle was the unsuccessful Scottish challenger of the seventh America's Cup in 1887 against American defender Volunteer.-Design:The cutter Thistle was designed by George Lennox Watson, with interiors by his brother Thomas Lennox Watson, and built at the D&W Henderson shipyard in Partick on the...

. "Volunteer" was skippered by Captain Hank Haff with the assistance of Captains Terry, Berry and L. Jeffreys.

Soon after the Cup races, "Volunteer" was bought by John Malcolm Forbes

John Malcolm Forbes

John Malcolm Forbes was a businessman and sportsman. He was born in Milton, Massachusetts in 1847 into the wealthy Forbes family of Boston. In addition, he was highly regarded as a yachtsman and horseman.-Horses:...

 (who also owned "Puritan

Puritan (yacht)

Puritan was the 1885 America's Cup defender.-Design:She was built at the George Lawley & Son yard in Boston, Massachusetts and launched May 26, 1885....

") and was altered as a schooner

Schooner

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

 in 1891. It was broken up at a New York junkyard in 1910.

Specifications

• Overall length: 32.91 m
• Length at water line: 26.10 m
• Beam
  Beam (nautical)
  The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
  
   (width): 7.06 m
• Draft
  Draft (hull)
  The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
  
  : 3.04 m
• Displacement
  Displacement (fluid)
  In fluid mechanics, displacement occurs when an object is immersed in a fluid, pushing it out of the way and taking its place. The volume of the fluid displaced can then be measured, as in the illustration, and from this the volume of the immersed object can be deduced .An object that sinks...
  
  : 130 tons
• Sail area: 834.40m²