BoatsWatch Hill 15

Watch Hill 15

Fractional Sloop · Keel/centreboard · First built 1922

A fiberglass daysailer built to a 1922 Herreshoff design that remains an active one-design racer

Designed by Nathaniel Herreshoff & A. Sidney DeWolf Herreshoff, built by Herreshoff Manufacturing Co.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

TrailerableBeam 2.03 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 1,270 kg of hull, so roughly 1,850 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Shoal draughtDraws 0.71 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her heavy displacement on a narrow beam gives 19 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 19
CoastalBluewater

1.90 — just under the 2.0 offshore line; her beam is modest for her weight.

Capsize screening 1.90
LightHeavy

370 — very heavy for her waterline, a serious load-carrying cruiser.

Displacement / length 370
EasygoingPowered-up

27.4 — a lot of sail for her weight; powered-up and eager, a real performer.

Sail area / displacement 27.4
TenderStiff

36% of her weight is ballast — moderately stiff, a middle-of-the-road stability.

Ballast 36%

Powered-up and quick to accelerate — this one likes to sail.

  • Narrower than ~96% of boats her size on file

Compared with 606 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
35.7%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Fractional Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
27.4
Displacement / length
370.4
Comfort ratio
19.3
Capsize screening
1.90
Hull speed
5.2 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
357
Hull
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.
Construction
Wood
Ballast type
Lead
Production
Years built
First built 1922
Designer
Nathaniel Herreshoff, A. Sidney DeWolf Herreshoff
Builder
Herreshoff Manufacturing Co

Boats like this, on the water

Nobody has filmed this one — but these are close.

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Deltania Yachts 267.92 mSame hull family0.5 m longer
We are SELLING our sailboat | 1329:30from MotionMe
Paceship Yachts Westwind 247.29 mSame hull family0.2 m shorterA Ted Hood-designed masthead sloop with a keel-centerboard configuration, built for versatility in shoal waters
Fiberglass Over Old Thru-Hulls — Permanent Repair!!from BoatworksToday
RS 216.40 mSame hull family1.1 m shorter
Training Sea Cadet Instructors | RS21 Keelboat Sailing – Welsh Harp1:37from City Sailing
Hunter Marine 226.78 mSame hull family0.7 m shorterA masthead sloop with a keel-centreboard configuration, designed for versatile shoal-water access and trailerability
Why TODAY Is the Best Time to Buy a 22-Foot Sailboat2:24from Lady K Sailing
Chrysler Marine 226.71 mSame hull family0.8 m shorterA 6.7-metre masthead sloop produced as the C-22 and T-22 Sandpiper, featuring a swing keel for shallow-water access
The Legend - S2 - Episode 151 - Lady K Sailingfrom Lady K Sailing
Cal Boats 247.43 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthThe inaugural Jensen Marine Cal model, this fractional keel-centerboard sloop was built for shoal-water versatility
Aladino Sails The Pacific Alone.2:08from Sailing Magic Carpet

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Herreshoff 15A classic gaff-rigged keel-centerboarder from 1902, later updated with a modernized rig by Sidney HerreshoffBuzzards Bay 15A 1899 gaff-rigged keel-centerboarder with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio and a long, active production historyHerreshoff 12 1/2A legendary gaff-rigged daysailer designed by Nathanael Herreshoff, still actively raced in both wood and fiberglassHerreshoff Manufacturing Seawanhaka One-DesignA 1916 Nathanael Herreshoff design, this fractional sloop features a long keel and classic lines for one-design racingHaven 12 1/2A Joel White redesign of the classic Herreshoff 12 1/2, featuring a centreboard and wider beam for versatile shoal sailingHerreshoff Manufacturing Co. S-ClassA durable one-design racer with over 70 hulls still active, built for the Seawanhaka Corinthian YC from 1919 to 1941

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

Two ways to keep looking — both search what the fleet has actually recorded.

Search the fleet for boats like thisAsk the fleet about the Watch Hill 15

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