The RCBYC web site

Bourinot's position as French Consul required him to entertain the officers of the French Admirals Ship, and other vessels of the French and British North Atlantic Fleets at his home during the summer when they visited Sydney Harbour.

The Bourinot residence with its verandahs and wharves was a Sydney landmark and was the social center of Sydney in an era when a variety of domestic and foreign vessels anchored in Sydney Harbour. It was located north of the current clubhouse where the so-called Robin Hood Wharf now stands and served as Sydney's unofficial yacht club until it burned in 1899.

Sydney's waterfront - Boat race, 1906. Postcard, private collection

On the evening of November 20, 1899, a group of prominent Sydney residents, officials of the Dominion Coal Company, and officials of the recently established Dominion Iron & Steel Company, met in the private dining room of the Sydney Hotel. That evening they founded the club, which they styled the Cape Breton Yacht Club, elected the club's officers and drew up the club charter and by-laws. Arthur James Moxham, the General Manager of the Dominion Iron & Steel Company was elected the first Commodore.

The Sydney Hotel, located at the corner of Esplanade and Dorchester Street, served as headquarters for the club during the first year of its existence. The club's officers soon formed the Cape Breton Building Company to purchase a building site and erect a clubhouse. Club members Sir William Cornelius Van Horne and his son Richard Benedict Van Horne did preliminary sketches of the proposed clubhouse to resemble the old Bourinot Residence.

Club members Henry Mellville Whitney and John Stewart McLennan commissioned Boston Architect, Richard Clipston Sturgiss, to design the building. Construction began in the spring of 1900. It opened on December 18, 1900, and has continued to operate since that time.

Annual regatta, 1905

With the clubhouse and wharf facilities completed, the flag officers made application for an Admiralty Warrant, which was granted on January 18, 1901. The granting of the Admiralty Warrant meant that vessels registered to the club were now permitted to fly the Blue Ensign of His Majesty's Fleet. Flying the Blue Ensign was a considerable distinction for any yacht in the British Commonwealth.

The club also applied for a Royal Warrant which would permit the club to add the prefix "Royal" to its name. By letter dated April 18, 1902, the members received notification that King Edward VII had granted the club a Royal Warrant, after which the present name was adopted. The Royal Warrant required the club to entertain and extend privileges to officers of the Royal Navy and to any visitor of distinguished rank or position. By way of a special act of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, the club was incorporated as The Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club on April 11,1903.

The Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club has been a leader in the yachting scene since its inception. The club-owned yacht, Cibou, was designed by George Herrick Duggan, the General Manager of Dominion Coal Company, and skippered by both Mr. Duggan and Shirley Davidson, a then recent electrical engineering graduate of McGill University who was also a three-time Stanley Cup Winner.

The Cibou captured every piece of silverware in Maritime waters in its first two seasons, first winning The Prince of Wales Trophy in 1901 and then the Coronation Cup in 1902, the latter of which would be held by the club until 1913. In the summer of 1906, motorboat racing was added to the club schedule.

The Great Moustache Contest, summer of 1901

In the early years, the club held races every Saturday afternoon to accumulate points for our oldest trophy, the Members Cup. It was presented at the end of the summer to the yacht that had accumulated the most points. Regatta week was filled with a variety of events such as sailing races, dory races, father-son swim, picnics, dinners, dances and the great mustache contest. Regatta celebrations concluded with a cruise on the Bras d'Or Lakes.

Mrs. Bridget Wolfe-Libbey in the Ladies' Boat Race to Petersfield, 1908

Worth seeing, more harbour scenes from yesteryear:

From Sydney "Down Under" (Australia)

In 1906, a young Walter Pinaud arrived from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, to establish a boatyard in Westmount the small community across Sydney Harbour from the club to serve the needs of club members. There he produced many fine yachts of his own design and those of Commodore Duggan.

His reputation as master yacht designer and builder grew and in 1913, he was hired by Alexander Graham Bell to take charge of Bell Laboratories Boatyard at Beinn Bhreagh. In 1917, he built the Bell family yacht, Elsie, and it still graces the waters of the Bras d'Or Lakes today.

Elsie, queen of the Bras d'Or Lakes

In 1926, Walter Pinaud established Pinaud's Yacht Yard in Baddeck where he designed and built fine yachts, and also built yachts designed by some of the world's most renowned yacht designers and naval architects.

Throughout its history, the clubhouse was the scene of gala parties and receptions. Among those who were received and entertained were wireless telegraph inventor, Guglielmo Marconi; steel baron, Andrew Carnegie; Robert E. Peary, the first non-indigenous person to reach the North Pole; telephone inventor, Alexander Graham Bell; Aeronaut, Casey Baldwin; National Geographic Magazine Editor, Gilbert Grosvenor; American Sculptor, Gertrude Vanderbilt-Whitney; the Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria; British Prime Minister, Sir Ramsay MacDonald, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt; and Queen Elizabeth II.

During both world wars, Sydney Harbour's strategic location in the North Atlantic made it a rendezvous point for the forming of convoys of merchant ships awaiting naval escorts to Europe. At this time, Royal Navy and military officers were extended club privileges.

The club's junior sailing program has produced some of the best yachtsmen in the Atlantic region and beyond. One of our earliest junior sailors, Cornelius Shields II (Corny), began his sailing career on Sydney Harbour as a young boy while living here during the early part of the last century. He went on in his adult life to become a great yachtsman and had the rare distinction of twice winning the Sewanhaka Cup. In September of 1952, after 1,500 elimination races, he and his two-man crew defeated several other crews to be the first winner of the Mallory Trophy. For this he was crowned the North American sailing champion, the first in history. In honor of his sailing accomplishment, Corny made the cover of Time Magazine on July 27, 1953.

The Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club has been a landmark on Sydney Harbour for over a century and will continue to play an important role in the revitalization of Sydney's downtown. With its century-old clubhouse and recently-constructed marina facility, the club should continue to attract sailors, tourists and local people for many years to come.

In June 2003, the club celebrated the 100th anniversary of its incorporation. Many events were planned to commemorate this milestone in the club's history. The Commodore, flag officers and club members invite you to come celebrate our history with us.

Neil Libbey's great-grandfather, George A. Libbey, was one of the founding members of the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club. Neil has published a book entitled: "Portside: An Early History of the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club" (June 2003).

This article, originally published in The Cape Bretoner (Spring 2003), has been reproduced with permission of the author, Neil Libbey, and of The Cape Bretoner's Editor,

Mrs. Pat O'Neil

The CAPE BRETONER

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Suggested readings:

Neil F. LIBBEY. Portside: An Early History of the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club. 2003 (Available from the Cape Breton Curiosity Shop, Charlotte St., Sydney.)

Brian TENNYSON and Roger SARTY. Guardian of the Gulf - Sydney, Cape Breton, and the Atlantic wars. University of Toronto Press, 2002.

See also, about the RCBYC Centennial:

Erica R. REID, "RCBYC marking milestone - Club plans full-range of festivities to marke 100th birthday bash. June 14, 2003, The Cape Breton Post.

Monsieur Bourinot, consul de France à Sydney, Île du Cap-Breton 1859

For regattas (and other events: festivals, etc.) in Cape Breton:

Explore Nova Scotia

This is Nova Scotia

About Sydney, Cape Breton