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An image by Peter Luke of Wayfarer c1943 at Mulgannon's boatshed Mosman Bay, construction being…
Material relating to Peter Luke's yacht WAYFARER
An image by Peter Luke of Wayfarer c1943 at Mulgannon's boatshed Mosman Bay, construction being finished off by Luke

Material relating to Peter Luke's yacht WAYFARER

Date1936 - 1999
Object numberANMS1105
NameArchive series
Mediumpaper
Copyright© Lindy Boyd
ClassificationsEphemera
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Lindy Boyd
Terms
    DescriptionThis archive series numbered [001] - [057] consists of logbooks and other material from Peter Luke's yacht WAYFARER. The 10 logbooks are written by Peter Luke and include entries by crewmembers aboard the yacht from the 1940s - 1990s. Peter Luke's manuscript details the yacht's construction, the first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race in 1945 and the Trans-Tasman race in 1948. The 27 photographs dated from 1925 - 1956 depict HELEN B STIRLING, KAIULANI, WAYFARER and other yachts in Sydney Harbour. Also included are newspaper clippings, poems, sketches, a program and a letter.HistoryPeter Luke launched WAYFARER early in World War II. It was built by Charles Larson in the early 1940s at his yard in Gladesville, Sydney. Larson had already built a yacht by the same designer, John Alden from the USA. Once the yacht was rigged WAYFARER served with the Volunteer Coastal Patrol on Sydney Harbour and along the NSW coast until the war ended in 1945. Around this time Peter Luke and his sailing friends, including artist Jack Earl, and naval architect Alan Payne established the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, and with it, the Sydney to Hobart race. Luke sailed WAYFARER with local Sydney yachts to accompany British sailor Captain John Illingworth on a cruise to Hobart, Tasmania. The cruise became a race that eventually became a bluewater classic. It was the first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and in 1945 Luke finished last, with a time of nearly 10 days. They went ashore twice, taking a casual attitude to the event. Peter Luke and his family lived aboard WAYFARER for many years. Luke was a well-known in Australian yachting, living a vagabond lifestyle on his yacht Wayfarer. WAYFARER is listed on the Australian Register of Historic Vessels, HV000152. The yacht remained in Luke's possession throughout his life, and was sold by the estate in 2008, a year after his death. SignificanceThis collection tells the story of professional photographer and recreational sailor Peter Luke and his yacht WAYFARER. Peter Luke co-founded the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in the 1940s in Sydney. The logbooks are a rare example of firsthand accounts covering volunteer coastal patrol work during World War II, sailing in the first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and other early sailing passages. The manuscript documents the owner’s experience of building and sailing WAYFARER - an important Australian recreational yacht.