The National Association of Amateur Oarsmen, organized in 1872, was the first national governing body of the sport of rowing in the United States, and the first American sports organization to publish a definition of "amateur". Before the NAAO, regattas across the country used different definitions of amateur, making it impossible to hold a national amateur championship regatta. [1] The NAAO's first national championship regatta was held in 1873 on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia. [2] Beginning in 1916, the Julius H. Barnes Points Trophy was awarded to the club scoring the most points over the course of the championship regatta. [3]
In 1982, the NAAO was merged with the National Women's Rowing Association to form the United States Rowing Association.
The following regattas were over one and one half miles (except the 1891 regatta in Washington, DC, which was one quarter mile)
Year | City | Championship senior single sculls [4] |
---|---|---|
1873 | Philadelphia | Charles Meyers |
1874 | Troy, NY | Frank E. Yates |
1875 | Troy, NY | Charles E. Courtney |
1876 | Philadelphia | Frank E. Yates |
1877 | Detroit | George W. Lee |
1878 | Newark, NJ | George W. Lee |
1879 | Saratoga, NY | F.J. Mumford |
1880 | Philadelphia | F.J. Mumford |
1881 | Washington, DC | F.E. Holmes |
1882 | Detroit | F.E. Holmes |
1883 | Newark, NJ | John Laing |
1884 | Watkins, NY | John Laing |
1885 | Boston | Daniel J. Murphy |
1886 | Albany, NY | Martin F. Monahan |
1887 | Jamestown, NY [5] | J.F. Corbett |
1888 | Sunbury, PA | C.G. Psotta |
1889 | Pullman, IL | D. Donohue |
1890 | Worcester, MA | William Caffrey |
1891 | Washington, DC | William Caffrey |
1892 | Saratoga, NY | John J. Ryan |
1893 | Detroit | John J. Ryan |
1894 | Saratoga, NY | Ferdinand Koenig |
1895 | Saratoga, NY | J.J. Whitehead |
1896 | Saratoga, NY | W.D. McDowell |
1897 | Philadelphia | Joseph Maguire |
1898 | Philadelphia | Edward Ten Eyck |
1899 | Boston | Edward Ten Eyck |
1900 | New York City | John Rumouhr |
1901 | Philadelphia | Edward Ten Eyck |
1902 | Worcester, MA | Constance Titus |
1903 | Worcester, MA | Constance Titus |
1904 | St. Louis, MO | Frank Greer |
1905 | Baltimore | Frank Greer |
1906 | Worcester, MA | Constance Titus |
1907 | Philadelphia | Harry S. Bennett [6] |
Spalding Athletic Library issued Official Rowing Guide in May 1896. Frederick R Fortmeyer (secretary of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen) compiled the 86 page guide. It also includes laws governing the association. [7]
Henley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the three other regattas rowed over approximately the same course, Henley Women's Regatta, Henley Masters Regatta, and Henley Town and Visitors' Regatta, each of which is an entirely separate event.
British Rowing, formerly the Amateur Rowing Association (ARA), is the national governing body for the sport of rowing. It is responsible for the training and selection of individual rowers and crews representing Great Britain and England, and for participation in and the development of rowing in England. Scottish Rowing and Welsh Rowing oversee governance in their respective countries, organise their own teams for the Home International Regatta and input to the GB team organisation.
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John Brendan Kelly Sr., known as Jack Kelly, was an American triple Olympic champion, the first in the sport of rowing. The Philadelphia-based Kelly also was a multimillionaire in the bricklaying and construction industry. He also was involved in politics, serving as Pennsylvania secretary of revenue and running unsuccessfully for mayor of Philadelphia in the 1935 Philadelphia mayoral election.
Rowing New Zealand is the sports governing body for rowing in New Zealand. Its purpose is to provide leadership and support to enable an environment of success for the New Zealand rowing community. This includes secondary schools, clubs, masters, universities and high performance.
The Schuylkill Navy is an association of amateur rowing clubs of Philadelphia. Founded in 1858, it is the oldest amateur athletic governing body in the United States. The member clubs are all on the Schuylkill River where it flows through Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, mostly on the historic Boathouse Row.
The Rowing Association of American Colleges the first collegiate athletic organization in the United States, was a body governing college rowing. Upon organization by the captains of the leading crews of the day, they devised a primary rule of eligibility: that only undergraduate students should be eligible to represent their college in the regatta. To this day, despite numerous amendments and additions, this rule remains the very foundation of the NCAA rules of eligibility.
The Skiff Racing Association (SRA) is the governing body in the United Kingdom for the sport of skiff racing. The SRA is affiliated to British Rowing. The objectives of the SRA are
Robert Coombes, celebrated professional oarsman and Champion Sculler, was born at Vauxhall, Surrey.
Charles Edward Courtney was an American rower and rowing coach from Union Springs, New York. A carpenter by trade, Courtney was a nationally known amateur rower. Courtney never lost a race as an amateur and finished a total of 88 victories.
Auriol Kensington Rowing Club is a rowing club in Hammersmith, west London, England. The club was formed in 1981 by the amalgamation of Auriol Rowing Club which was founded in 1896 and Kensington Rowing Club which was founded in 1872. The clubhouse is on Lower Mall adjacent to Hammersmith Bridge.
Bachelors Barge Club is an amateur rowing club located at #6 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest continuously operating boathouse in the United States. It went through renovations as part of the "Light Boathouse Row" initiative, in which new LED lights were fitted to each of the boathouses. Bachelors Barge Club is currently home to several programs, including the Conestoga High School Crew Team, and the Drexel University Crew Team, among several others.
Pennsylvania Barge Club is an amateur rowing club, situated along the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1861 and joined the Schuylkill Navy in 1865. The club's boathouse, at #4 Boathouse Row, is also known as the Hollenback House, named for William M. Hollenback, Jr., who served as President of USRowing from 1979 until 1985.
Crescent Boat Club is an American amateur rowing club located at #5 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1867 when Pickwick Barge Club and Iona Barge Club merged. Crescent Boat Club joined the Schuylkill Navy in 1868. In 1871, Crescent competed in and won the doubles event in the first regatta of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen, an event "which undoubtedly helped the sport greatly."
Undine Barge Club is an amateur rowing club located at #13 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row along the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The club was founded in 1856. Undine was not initially listed as a founder of the Schuylkill Navy, but is now considered a founder because an Undine member, Mr. B. F. Van dyke, was elected to represent the club as secretary treasurer of the Navy from its birth in 1858. In 1860, Undine purchased Keystone Barge Club's boat and equipment, as Keystone had disposed of its boathouse.
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The Ottawa Rowing Club (ORC) is a rowing club based in the City of Ottawa. It is the oldest continuous rowing club in Canada. It is a registered club with Rowing Canada and Row Ontario.
The King's Cup is Australia's blue riband annual rowing race for men. Since 1878 it has been contested by state representative senior heavyweight men's coxed eights at the annual Australian Interstate Regatta. Since 1973 the Australian Interstate Regatta has been conducted on the final day of the week-long annual Australian Rowing Championships. The King's Cup is the final event of the Australian Championships and the Interstate Regatta.
The Julius H. Barnes Points Trophy is a trophy originally awarded by the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen to the winning club of their national championship regatta. The trophy was first awarded in 1916 at the regatta held in Duluth. It was valued at $4,000, equivalent to $99,609 in 2021. It is named after a wealthy grain exporter who bankrolled the regatta. The scoring system was designed to be similar to that of the Lipton Cup, a trophy for sailing. As of 2017, the United States Rowing Association, successor to the NAAO, has the original Barnes trophy in their possession and occasionally displays it at events.