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STRUEN MARIE in 2008
Struen Marie
STRUEN MARIE in 2008
STRUEN MARIE in 2008
Private Collection

Struen Marie

Vessel numberHV000197
Vessel Registration NumberNO2O3Q
Sail Number117
Date1950
DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 10.67 m x 8.23 m x 2.9 m x 1.83 m, 7.38 tonnes (35 ft x 27 ft x 9.5 ft x 6 ft, 7.5 tons)
DescriptionSTRUEN MARIE was built by Les Steel at his Speers Point boatyard on Lake Macquarie, NSW in 1950. Steel based the design on a plan by English naval architect Robert Clark. He adjusted the shape to fit the 35ft maximum length allowed for yachts racing with the Sydney Amateur Sailing Club (SASC). The first owner was Tom Williamson, a chemist, whose wife was named Sheila. The yacht was named after their daughter Struen Marie and later in its life, the third owner was his son Michael Williamson and his wife Casandra Firman.

The 10.67m wooden yacht is carvel planked in full length Huon pine on laminated spotted gum frames, supported by grown timbers for floors, stem and knees. This sturdy construction is a mark of the high quality skills typical of Les and Barry Steel's boatbuilding.

STRUEN MARIE is one of the early purpose-built yachts designed for the Sydney to Hobart race, and it won this event in 1951. At the same time it also set a race record which stood for another 11 years.

In its first year of sailing STRUEN MARIE won most of the major races it entered, and continued to have a fine career racing offshore and on Sydney Harbour for a number of years. Included in its trophy list is the Kelly Cup from the SASC, which dates from 1893 and is one of the oldest remaining yachting trophies in Australia. Now as a classic yacht, STRUEN MARIE has won many classic yacht regattas in Sydney and Queensland.

The Mercury December 31 1951 carried the following report about STRUEN MARIE:

"The crew of Struen Marie thought their inability to take off the yacht's spinnaker off the south-east coast of Tasmania on Saturday night would put them out of the race.
In a hard blow the skipper (D. A. Williamson) was forced to head seaward before the wind while the crew worked to get the big running sail down. Struen Marie, moving fast through the water, was taken miles off course.
A weather change, which gave Struen Marie a big advantage over the rest of the fleet, allowed her to improve her position from fifth to third. Williamson said that at times in her run off course Struen Marie was moving faster through and at times "over" the water than was considered possible by a craft of her size.
She finished only 16 minutes behind Lass o' Luss, which crossed the line 43 minutes after Margaret Rintoul."

SignificanceSTRUEN MARIE is a wooden racing built in NSW in 1950. It won the Sydney to Hobart yacht race in 1951 and is also an early example of a yacht that was purpose-built for the event. The 10.67m (35ft) yacht was built by important regional boat builders, Les and Barry Steel at Lake Macquarie in NSW.
DAWN WIND OF KIRRIBILLI's lovey stern shape
Les & Barry Steel
1965
YARRAWONGA in 2016
Charles Larson
1939
Vivienne Marie
Hald & Johansen
1965
Casuarina Sydney Harbour 2023.
Hald & Johansen
1967
On Lake Alexandrina in 1887-89
Willans and Robinson
1884
NYMPHAEA at the Geelong Wooden Boat Festival in 2016
C Blunt
1946
ANITRA V on Sydney Harbour
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd
1956
A drawing of the STAR OF AUSTRALIA, with profile and plan views superimposed.
George Green
1863
NAUTILUS II in 2009
H Maumill
1912
HOANA under sail on Sydney Harbour early in its racing life.
J Hayes & Sons
1925
SOLVEIG in the early 1950s
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd
1950