Franklin Osgood (December 24, 1828January 13, 1888) was a 19th-century businessman and yachtsman. He was one of the most experienced yachtsman having sailed for more than 23 years. He was owner and manager of the racing yachts ''Widgeon'', ''Columbia'', and ''Magic''. He was the first defender and two-time winner of the

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

(1870 and 1871). Osgood was inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame in 2020.

Early life

Franklin Osgood was born in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Maryland in 1828. He was the son of Robert Hawkins Osgood (1790–1855) and Sally Archer (1792–1872). His father came from

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

. He married Isabella Borrowe on February 8, 1854, at the St. George's Church in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. Franklin had an older brother, George Archer Osgood (1820–1882) who was a yachtsman, which he later went into business with. He married Eliza Matilda Vanderbilt a daughter of Commodore

Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...

. A younger brother, William Henry Osgood (1837–1896), was a yachtsman and purchased the schooner yacht ''Phantom'' from ex-Commodore

Henry G. Stebbins Col. Henry George Stebbins (September 15, 1811 – December 9, 1881) was a U.S. Representative from New York during the latter half of the American Civil War. Early life Stebbins was born in Ridgefield, Connecticut, to Mary Largin (1783–1874) ...

in 1873.

Professional life

In 1856, Osgood became a director of the Silver Hill Mining Company in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. After the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Osgood purchased controlling interest the mining company of

, which yielded rich returns. With the acquisition of wealth, he became a yachtsman. In 1865, he purchased the yacht ''Widgeon'', built by James R. & George Steers, that won several races. One of them was a $1,000 race with the yacht ''Vesta''. On April 28, 1867, Lloyd Phoenix, Rear Commodore of the New York Yacht Club, purchased the yacht ''Widgeon'' from Franklin Osgood. On December 11, 1866, there was a transatlantic race between three American yachts, the ''Vesta'' owned by Pierre Lorillard IV, the ''Fleetwing'' owned by George Osgood and the ''Henrietta'' owned by yachtsman James Gordon Bennett Jr. Each yachtsman put up $30,000 in the winner-take-all wager. They started off at

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern en ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, during high westerly winds and raced to The Needles, the furthest westerly point on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

in the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. Bennett's ''Henrietta'' won with a time of 13 days, 21 hours, 55 minutes. The New York Yacht Club Racing Schooner Magic, by Charles Gulager 1109

In 1869, Osgood bought the racing yacht ''Magic''. His first victory with the ''Magic'' was over the ''Rambler'' in the fall of 1869.

The America's Cup challenges

On August 8, 1870, Osgood's schooner ''Magic'' became the first yacht to successfully defend the

for the New York Yacht Club in the inaugural defense of the trophy. ''Magic'' defeated sixteen other defenders and the first challenger ''Cambria,'' representing the Royal Thames Yacht Club of London. Other yachts in the race included the ''Dauntless,'' ''Idler,'' ''Fleetwing,'' ''Phantom,'' ''America'' and others. Osgood sold the ''Magic'' to New York actor Lester Wallack, for $16,500 on October 11, 1870. Osgood bought her back but sold her to Rufus Hatch in 1873. In 1874, she was purchased by William T. Garner, who kept her until 1876, when Osgood bought her back for a third time and kept until 1879. Jsj-024-columbia

Osgood built the schooner-yacht ''Columbia'', at the J.B Van Deusen shipyard in 1871. He sailed the ''Columbia'' in the second

race in 1871 against British challenger yacht ''Livonia''. Skippered by Andrew J. Comstock, ''Columbia'' won the first two races against ''Livonia''. She was beaten by ''Livonia'' in the third race and was so damaged in the race, that she was unable to compete in the final races. She was the first America's Cup defender to concede a win to the challenger. The yacht ''

Sappho Sappho (; el, Σαπφώ ''Sapphō'' ; Aeolic Greek ''Psápphō''; c. 630 – c. 570 BC) was an Archaic Greek poet from Eresos or Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her Greek lyric, lyric poetry, written to be sung while ...

'' was substituted and won the America's Cup for the second time for the U.S. In 1872, he won the Bennett Cup at

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

in the ''Columbia''. He continued as master of the ''Columbia'' after the yacht was sold to Lester Wallack in 1872. Osgood remained with the New York Yacht Club where he completed three terms of service as Rear-Commodore. He was a member of the first America's Cup Committee of the N.Y.Y.C, which was formed in 1869 and consisted of George L. Schuyler,

Moses H. Grinnell Moses Hicks Grinnell (March 3, 1803 – November 24, 1877) was a United States Congressman representing New York, and a Commissioner of New York City's Central Park. Early life Grinnell was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on March 3, ...

, and Osgood. In 1881, Osgood purchased the Lehigh Zinc Company's mines and formed the Friedensville Zinc Company. He built a zinc oxide plant and zinc smelter in

Friedensville, Pennsylvania Friedensville is an unincorporated community which is located in Upper Saucon Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Lehigh Valley, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the U.S ...

Zinc mining Zinc mining is the process by which mineral forms of the metal zinc are extracted from the earth through mining. A zinc mine is a mine that produces zinc minerals in ore as its primary product. Common co-products in zinc ores include minerals of le ...

was a key industry in the area with the Friedensville Zinc Mines dating back to 1845.

Death

Franklin Osgood died on January 13, 1888, age 62, at the New-York Hotel in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Funeral services were held at the historic

Grace Church Grace Church may refer to: Canada * Grace Church on-the-Hill, Toronto China * Grace Church, Guanghan Poland * Grace Church, Teschen or Jesus Church, a Lutheran basilica in Teschen, Poland United Kingdom United States * Grace Cathedral (disam ...

. Interment was at the Green-wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.

Honors

For his services to the America's Cup, he was inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame in 2020.

External links

America's CupAmerica's Cup Hall of Fame

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osgood, Franklin 1828 births 1888 deaths Sea captains Maritime pilotage People from Baltimore America's Cup Members of the New York Yacht Club