sailboat-Celebrity Sloop

L.O.A. 199
Beam 64
Draft 10/33
Displacement 800 lbs
Sail Area 172 Sq.Ft.
Mast Height 25

Celebrity Class Sloop

The Celebrity (a brief historical sketch)
The Celebrity is based upon a design indigenous to the Friesland area of Northern Holland which dates back to the
1920s. The original boats (called Dutch G and Berggneer) were gaff-rigged catboats. They were subsequently changed to
gaff sloops, with the mast stepped in a tabernacle to permit easy lowering to pass through the many canal bridges in Holland.
During WW II more than one young Dutchman avoided the Nazis by hiding out in a low-slung Celebrity, mast down, in the
Dutch canals. To this day, the largest indigenous one-design fleet in Holland is the 16m2 fleet a gaff-rigged sloop with a hull
very similar to the Celebrity.
In 1951, while traveling in Holland, Stan Evanson was impressed by the sleek hull design of these Dutch boats and
decided to incorporate the hull lines in the design of a new sloop-rigged boat for the U.S. Evanson, in cooperation with Johann
Wester, designed a similar boat, naming it the Celebrity.
The first hulls were constructed in Holland and imported to the states by the P. Evanson Boat Company of Riverside,
New Jersey. Construction was strip-planked mahogany with sitka spruce spars. Both centerboard and keel models were offered,
utilizing outboard rudders with the tiller in the same position as todays design.
Over the years several design changes have been made to the Celebrity. In the 1950s, the rudder design was modified
to an inboard rudder placed at the end of the skeg, improving handling capability. The hull construction was changed to
molded plywood to reduce costs and a Genoa jib was added as an option to the sail plan, quickly replacing the traditional
working jib. Dacron sails were also first introduced.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s design improvements continued. The first fiberglass Celebrity hulls were imported
from Holland; however, wooden decks, centerboard trunks and cockpit trim were retained. In 1972, Evanson decided to construct
the hulls in the US. Molds were produced in the states and production averaged 35 boats per year. The first completely
glassed boat was finished in June of 1972, and was number C720.
Stan Evanson sold the yard in the mid 1980s, and by the fall of 1986, the Celebrity molds were in the hands of Fred
Scopinich, owner of the Hampton Shipyard in East Quogue, NY. Fred is a former Star Class Champion, and was a four time
Celebrity National Champion in the mid 1980s. Fred redesigned the cockpit as a one-piece fiberglass insert, and added watertight
bulkheads fore and aft.
Fred Scopinich sold the molds to Tom Jones who as an avid Celebrity Sailer hoped to revive the class. As his business
activities precluded this revival, Tom Jones in 2008 sold the molds to Douglas Goldhirsch of Southport Island Marine in
Southport, ME. Doug had owned Celebrities (first a fiberglass model and later a wooden molded ply version) from 1979 until
nearly 1990. Southport Island Marine is now offering the boats for sale.
til nearly 1990. Southport Island Marine is now offering the boats for sale.
Testimonial: Celebrity Association member Hank Baer:
. . . I then saw one of the moulded ply Celebrities a little later onI had to have one!!I went to Evansons shop and
ordered a new one around 1974I asked him to make it all white, both hull and decksThat made it an illegal class boat at
that time as the rules said they had to have blue decksI bought the boat because it was beautiful and was a wonderful, stable
sailerI sailed that boat everywhere from Lake George NY, to Virginia Beach, VA. I love the boat for its yacht like appearance
and its stiff, relaxing sailing qualitiesIts in a class all of its own.

Options include:
Trailer, Auxiliary power (electric or gas), roller furling jib, Sunbrella
Boom Tent.

Complete package comes ready to sail.

This beautiful Centerboard Daysailer has been in production in the U.S. since the 1950s, and there are fleets scattered across the nation. The boats are fast and responsive. They are roomy and comfortable to sail. The rig is set up for easy stepping and un stepping. All fiberglass construction is easy to maintain. Floatation is provided to make the boat unsinkable.

The Celebrity Class Sloop is a handsome, handy, able, dry, and fast little centerboard Daysailer. Long a favorite of shallow water sailors who appreciate classic lines able performance, the boat has not been in production for nearly 10 years.
Southport Island Marine Owner, Doug Goldhirsch, owned one of these boats for many years early in his sailing life. When he found out that these molds were available, he purchased them in 2008. At this writing early in 2009, Southport Island Marine is ready to
offer them for sale once again.

boat molds
Complete Package Price: $24,900.00