History
Through the efforts and the passion of sailing, five devoted yachtsmen, James C. Rockwell, Joseph A. Thomas, Aubrey P. Ames, Stewart E. Tait, A.S. Heyward, the first by-laws of the Club were signed on January 20, 1927. The Club was established to encourage and develop boating throughout the country, The club also strived to teach fair play, and to teach people about yachting, camaraderie and good sportsmanship.
With a rich history of over 75 years, there is no doubt that the Club also went through a lot of rough sailing in the past. The pleasure of sailing was stopped in December 1941 when World War II began. The Americans confiscated the boats docked at the MYC basin for fear that the Japanese soldiers might use them to launch an attack on Corregidor. The boats were sunk and others were set on fire. Sailing then came to a complete halt from 1941-1945 when the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth troops arrived to liberate Manila. The US Army occupied the Club and in March 1947, MYC was able to secure the property where it stands today. Women also started to become members of the Club during that time.
The Club began to join some international sailing competitions in the 1960s. The Philippines was the first Asian country to participate in the Olympics yachting events. Also during that time, eighty percent of club membership was composed of Americans and other expatriates.
In the 1970s, expat membership declined and they began to leave the country due to the dictatorship of the Martial Law years. Membership picked up again during the mid-1980s until the early 1990s. But sailing went down in 1995 because of the Asian Economic Crisis.
Since the Philippines is considered to be prone to typhoons and devastating storms, the boat owners had problems in maintenance and safety of their yachts. The solution came about in 1998 when the height of the seawall was increased to protect the boats anchored at the basin of the Manila Yacht Club. The following year, another major project materialized with the launching of the floating berths which serves as a place of protection for the boats in the basin. From then on, maintenance and accessibility became easier.
In 1998, the Club became a proprietary corporation when members became shareholders. A member can sell his share or pass it on to his heirs.
The Manila Yacht Club is also affiliated with the Philippine Sailing Association and aims to race competitively in local and international sailing events.
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Manila Yacht Club
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Members' docked yachts at Manila Bay
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—Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874–1936)
“The disadvantage of men not knowing the past is that they do not know the present. History is a hill or high point of vantage, from which alone men see the town in which they live or the age in which they are living.”
—Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874–1936)
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—Attributed to Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929)