About Odyssey

ODYSSEY’S HISTORY

In 1937 Mrs. Barklie Vanderbilt Henry, of Old Westbury, New York went to the firm of Sparkman & Stephens and requested a sailboat to be designed and built for her. It was based on the design of Dorade, but extended to 88 1/2ft in length with an 18-ft. beam. The vessel was built at Henry Nevins Shipyard in City Island, New York. She was completed in late fall and delivered to the family in November of 1938. Mr. & Mrs Henry took their two children through the Panama Canal to visit the Galapagos Islands during the summer of 1939 or 1940. The family used the boat in the New York and Connecticut waters until 1942. When World War II began in 1941, the US Navy commandeered Odyssey for service in the war on July 31, 1942. The family took their personal belongings off, as well as the 2 carvings, which were put into the family’s storage for the war years.

Odyssey was repowered with diesel power in August and September in Port Everglades, Florida and was placed in service on October 17, 1942. After outfitting she was commissioned on June 20, 1943. The Navy changed her name from Odyssey to Saluda, and assigned a designation of IX87. She was assigned to the Bureau of Ordinance for experimental work at the Underwater Sound Laboratory, New London, Connecticut. She was overhauled during the summer of 1943. After the war ended in 1945, the family was asked if they wanted to take the boat back, but there had been lots of wear and tear on the boat and the family had other interests, so they declined the offer. She was decommissioned and placed in service in 1945. The boat was assigned to Woods Hole Institute in Connecticut during 1945, 1946 and 1947. Saluda was recommissioned on May 20, 1946, to be used for further experimental work in hydrographics.

In 1947 the boat was reassigned to the Navy Electronic Lab in San Diego, to begin the underwater sound recording program. Over the next 27 years, until 1974, the boat participated in sound recording, as well as dolphin training programs. Operating as a silent platform, she was used for tests on experimental SONAR equipment and techniques developed for undersea warfare. On June 29, 1968, she was reclassified as YAG87. For the recording program, Saluda worked with both a submarine and a submarine tender. They would go out into the ocean for several days at a time. They would anchor for the night and gently roll on the ocean swells.

When out in the ocean, the crew was often augmented by technicians and scientists. Unfortunately, these individuals were not always good sailors and would become quite seasick, in spite being given generous amounts of Dramamine. At one time these non-crew threatened to have the masts cut off to reduce the rolling. Fortunately, this plan was not accepted. Under the command of Captain George H. Hanson, Saluda was entered into the 1950 Newport, California, to Ensenada, Mexico, race. While not equipped with a full complement of sails, in fact with borrowed sails, she was able to win the overall race, receiving a great deal of positive publicity. As a result of her win, George was given $10,000 and was asked to get 1) a new set of sails, 2) a set of uniforms for the crew for appearances sake and 3) a knife and marlinspike in a leather sheath for each of the crew-members. George Hanson’s own knife set is in the possession of the Sea Scout Ship Odyssey. George also donated his scrapbook of photos taken during the New Port to Ensenada Race. At one time, she was the sailboat with the most entries in the Newport to Ensenada race, totaling some 25 races. In San Diego, in addition to the sound recording program, the boat was used to entertain visiting dignitaries and for recreational purposes. She also was the most recent Commissioned Sailing Vessel that the US Navy had. In 1974 Saluda was reassigned to the Athletic and Recreation Department at Whidbey Island, Naval Air Station in Washington State. During the next 4 years, she was described as the consummate party boat during summer time. A skipper and mate were assigned at the beginning of the summer and parties lasted until the fall. In 1978 there was a limited amount of money available for recreational activities and the two primary choices were either maintenance on Saluda or improvements to the golf course. The individual in charge of the allocation was a golfer, so the money went to improving the golf facilities and the decision was made to part with Saluda.

She was offered to some 70 military installations, none of which wanted to take on a ’90 foot yawl (that was going to take a great deal of work because it was in such poor shape).

The person in the Seattle GSA office had been a Cub, Scout, Explorer and Explorer leader in the Mt. Rainier Council (in Tacoma) so it was offered to them first. They purchased the boat for the sum of $1.00. The boat needed a great deal of work to bring it to good condition, and numerous adults and youth have spent many thousands of days of effort and thousands upon thousands of dollars to return it to its prior condition.

For the 50th anniversary, the scouts held a party. At that time, the carvings that had been removed at the beginning of WW II were returned to the boat by a descendant of the original owners. The carvings were commissioned by Mr. Barkley Henry and show the story of Homer’s Odyssey & Iliad.

For several years, there was an enormous challenge to obtain funding to pay for necessary equipment and labor. In March of 1992 an article appeared in the SCOUTER magazine that goes to Scoutmasters throughout the country. The article showed the kind of high adventure that can be had on Odyssey. Since then there has been a full program of week-long summer charters that provide the majority of Odyssey’s annual budget. Odyssey Sea Scout Ship program now operates spring and fall charters in Commencement Bay and High Adventure charters in the San Juan Islands during the months of July and August.

Today, Odyssey operates as a Subchapter T vessel under the regulations of the US Coast Guard. All of its Skippers are licensed with a minimum of a 100-ton license with sail endorsement. Odyssey has assisted at least fifteen adults in obtaining their USCG 100 ton, auxiliary sails Master license. There are typically about 45 youth and 25 adult members in the year round crew. The summer program introduces 80 youth and 16 adults to sailing each year. In the twenty-five years of operation of this program, the year round program has introduced over 600 youth to tall ship sailing. In the same time frame, the summer program has reached over 2000 youth. There are currently two youth crews who take turns operating Odyssey; the Thursday night “Port & Starboard” crew and the Friday afternoon “Topmen”. These two crews work together to operate the ship on public charters, weekend excursions and maintain a living history and sailing tradition that benefits the entire Puget Sound area. The program has sent Odyssey youth to Merchant Marine Academies in California and New York, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and the U.S. Naval Academy. Multiple youth have received their 100-ton Master license, several youth graduated from California Maritime Academy, and many others are working in the maritime industry.