Detroit Boat Club

Detroit Boat Club

The Detroit Boat Club, established in 1839, is the oldest sport rowing club in the United States. It is also the second oldest continuous rowing club in the world. It was first created on the Detroit River during a time in which Detroit, Michigan was just starting to grow. The Detroit Boat Club is a member of the Detroit Regional Yacht-racing Association (DRYA).

E. A. Brush, Alpheus S. Williams, S.H. Sibley, Alfred Brush, J.H. Farnsworth, James A. Armstrong and John Chester were among the founding members, prominent men in Detroit's society. The first building that housed the club was at Hasting street, in an old clubhouse with one boat, the "Georgiana".

In 1840 the Detroit Boat Club bought a second boat, the E.A. Brush, and began to hold two mile (3 km) races from Hog Island (Belle Isle) and the clubhouse. It was around this time that the famous University Boat Race between Cambridge vs. Oxford races began on the River Thames in England.

In 1848 the clubhouse burned, destroying all boats except the "Wolverine". The club was then moved to a carpentry shop, and it continued to grow.

By 1873 the club was ensconced in plush quarters at the foot of Joseph Campau, the easternmost end of Detroit, and had become the center of all water sports. A half-dozen new clubs formed nearby, and most displayed their sailing and rowing trophies at Bidigaire's saloon up Joseph Campau. The Biddle House on East Jefferson and the Russell House, also attracted a thirsty boating set.

When its Joseph Campau lease expired in 1889 the City of Detroit invited the DBC to move to Belle Isle. The Detroit Yacht Club, which had been on the landward side of the Belle Isle Bridge, also went over to the island at that time when informed that the city needed their old site for its new bridge approach.

A new clubhouse was built on Belle Isle in 1891, but was burned in 1893. Another boathouse lasted until 1901 when it also burned. In an attempt to save the structure, club member and fire commissioner Fred Moran ordered all available firefighting apparatus to the scene. Horses thundered over the old wooden bridge, dragging heavy engines and trucks behind them. The fire tug James Battle became grounded in the shallow water and remained stuck fast until the following noon. Fire equipment failed to get close enough to the burning building due to mud and the distance of the old clubhouse from the shore. Helpless, they stood and watched it burn. The next morning, club members vowed once again to rebuild their clubhouse.