Just when you needed those local facts and figures, for all the Lockdown quizzes going on, the Club has provided the answers!  Getting ready for the run-up to our Centenary in 2022, the History pages on the website have been expanded and transformed - take a visit and find out how the Club started, who were the leading lights, what were their sailing feats and what social activities did they get up to.  You can add to this by suggesting topics for inclusion and contributing any material that features the History of the Club.

 

 

It’s all to be found from the Club website homepage (click on the tab “About”, then the dropdown link to “Club History”) …. or simply click, here: https://rlymyc-history.org.uk/  …. colourfully and interestingly laid out, there are sections on the early years, as well as the strong post-war development; there are features, chronicles, achievements and publications - all running to more than 20 pages.  Delve into 46 editions of the PotterShip; rummage through over 40 of the early Club Bulletins, from 1946 onwards; pore over 38 Information Sheets; or scan nearly 15 years’ worth of PotterNews and its “e” successor.  By the way, if anyone has copies of the missing Bulletins from 1955 and 1956, do come forward - a reward awaits!
 
Read about all the Olympic successes, the Club’s circumnavigators, the Royal Lymington Cup, who were our past Commodores, and a growing archive of racing and cruising history … and who it was who took a dislike, and a shotgun, to one of the ferries (no, not even one of the new, large ones!)  And if that wasn’t enough, the Historian stands ready to (try and) answer questions from Members, on the Club’s first ten decades - drop him a line at: https://rlymyc-history.org.uk/contact-page/
 
None of this magnificent treasury would have survived, nor been presented here, if it hadn’t been for some dedicated souls, who salvaged what they could from the wreckage of the 1989 flood, which damaged so much original material.  It all started with Judy Ruffell, then on the General Committee, who with the help of Jon Chittock, then Waterfront Manager, located the stored remnants, and arranged for the material to be extracted, spread out, collated and recorded. 
 
In 2005, Anthony Ruffell was appointed Club Archivist and began the painstaking task of developing a coherent archive.  To that, Anthony then added content obtained from various other sources, to create what is as comprehensive an archive as could be obtained.  In this, he was substantially assisted by Neil Eccles, whose editorial and production skills led to the creation of the History pages, which you will now find on the website.
 
Anthony’s considerable efforts over the years as Archivist, were recognised at the Annual Dinner in 2019, when he was awarded the Commodore’s Cup. On that occasion, Anthony stepped down with the honorary title of Archivist Emeritus and the Club then appointed Graham Clarke as Historian, to take on the work of Anthony.  Graham and Neil continue to develop the archive and the History website, presenting it for the benefit of the Club and its Members.