ouble-Ended Sharpies

The use of the principles of flatiron skiff design in sharp-stern, or
"double-ended," boats has been common. On the Chesapeake Bay a number of
small, double-ended sailing skiffs, usually fitted with a centerboard
and a single leg-of-mutton sail, were in use in the 1880's. It is
doubtful, however, that these skiffs had any real relationship to the
New Haven sharpie. They may have developed from the "three-plank"
canoe[11] used on the Bay in colonial times.

[11] A primitive craft made of three wide planks, one of which formed
the entire bottom.

The "cabin skiff," a double-ended, half-decked, trunk-cabin boat with a
long head and a cuddy forward, was also in use on the Bay in the 1880's.
This boat, which was rigged like a bugeye, had a bottom of planks that
were over 3 inches thick, laid fore-and-aft, and edge-bolted. The
entire bottom was made on two blocks or "sleepers" placed near the ends.
The sides were bevelled, and heavy stones were placed amidships to give
a slight fore-and-aft camber to the bottom. The sides, washboards, and
end decks were then built, the stones removed, and the centerboard case
fitted. In spite of its slightly cambered flat bottom, this boat, though
truly a flatiron skiff in midsection form, had no real relation to the
New Haven sharpie; it probably owed its origin to the Chesapeake log
canoe, for which it was an inexpensive substitute.

[Illustration: FIGURE 20.--Florida sharpie yacht of about 1890.]

R. M. Munroe built double-ended sharpies in Florida, and one of these
was used to carry mail between Biscayne Bay and Palm Beach. Although
Munroe's double-enders were certainly related to the New Haven sharpie,
they were markedly modified and almost all were yachts.

A schooner-rigged, double-ended sharpie was used in the vicinity of San
Juan Island, Washington, in the 1880's, but since the heels of the stem
and stern posts were immersed it is very doubtful that this sharpie was
related in any way to the New Haven boats.

Modern Sharpie Development

The story of the New Haven sharpie presents an interesting case in the
history of the development of small commercial boats in America. As has
been shown, the New Haven sharpie took only about 40 years to reach a
very efficient stage of development as a fishing sailboat. It was
economical to build, well suited to its work, a fast sailer, and
attractive in appearance.

When sailing vessels ceased to be used by