Yacht Romola History
In 1903 the Wright brothers flew their first successful aeroplane, the Ford Motor Company was established, Edward VII was proclaimed Emperor of India and Romola was launched on 16th June by Camper & Nicholson at their Gosport yard.
Commissioned by a Mr. Anthony A Sanderson, Romola was handed over to her new owner two weeks later where she was joined by three deck hands, one engineer, one steward, one cook, her captain and six tonnes of coal for her steam engine.
Romola's longest journey under Mr. Sanderson's command was a cruise of the Baltic in 1908, covering 1568 miles and using 25 tonnes of coal. In 1909 he set off once more for a cruise round Britain, departing from Dover and reaching as far North as Fort William before cutting through the Caledonian Canal to the East coast, Edinburgh and down again to Gosport, all of which is documented in detail in her 1909 log book.
Mr. Sanderson's adventurous spirit left a legacy in the shape of the Romola Cup. Given to the Royal Cruising Club in 1909 the cup is still annually presented to the Club Member who has shown the greatest long distance cruising ability under the most difficult conditions. In 1912 Romola returned to her makers to have her obsolete steam engine replaced with latest petrol and paraffin engine. Shortly afterwards she was sold to the Earl of Morton a member of the highly prestigious Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes where she caught the eye of the Commodore, Sir Ralph St. Gore Bt, who persuaded the Earl to part with her. She remained his property until 1922 when she was returned to her builders for a refit for her new owner, power boat racer Fred May.
The First World War marked the end of this era of opulence and by the end of World War Two new materials and techniques were in use such as waterproof glues and plywood, allowing cheaper boats to be built. Romola, like so many of her kind, became too expensive and inconvenient to maintain and was passed from owner to owner becoming more and more dilapidated until she was discovered by her present owner in 1985 in a terrible state in Dunstaffnage Bay, Scotland.
Romola was brought from the West Coast of Scotland, through the canal she once travelled through in her youth as a steam yacht, to Leith in Edinburgh. Extensive renovations spanning 20 years have assured her place among the finest vintage yachts afloat today.