''Nancy Blackett'' is a , 7-ton (

Thames Measurement Thames Measurement, also known as Thames Tonnage, is a system for measuring ships and boats. It was created in 1855 as a variation of Builder's Old Measurement by the Royal Thames Yacht Club, and was designed for small vessels, such as yachts. It ...

Bermuda rig A Bermuda rig, Bermudian rig, or Marconi rig is a configuration of Mast (sailing), mast and rigging for a type of sailboat and is the typical configuration for most modern sailboats. This configuration was developed in Bermuda in the 1600s; the t ...

ged sailing cutter built in 1931. The boat is now owned and operated by The Nancy Blackett Trust. Built by David Hillyard and originally named ''Spindrift'' at her launch in 1931 (and then renamed ''Electron'' by her next owner), she was bought by children's author

Arthur Ransome Arthur Michell Ransome (18 January 1884 – 3 June 1967) was an English author and journalist. He is best known for writing and illustrating the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books about the school-holiday adventures of childre ...

in 1934 and renamed ''Nancy Blackett'' after the major character of the same name in his

Swallows and Amazons series The ''Swallows and Amazons'' series is a series of twelve children's adventure novels by English author Arthur Ransome. Set in the interwar period, the novels involve group adventures by children, mainly in the school holidays and mainly in En ...

of children's books. He sailed her mostly on the east coast of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and the southern

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

from her home port of

Pin Mill A pin mill is a mill that comminutes materials by the action of pins that repeatedly move past each other. Much like a kitchen blender, it breaks up substances through repeated impact. The mill is a type of vertical shaft impactor mill and consi ...

near

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...

. She is most notable for being the original of the fictional yacht ''Goblin'' in Ransome's book '' We Didn’t Mean to Go to Sea'' (1937), which recounts a voyage across the North Sea to the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

port of

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; zea, label=Zeelandic, Vlissienge), historically known in English as Flushing, is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic l ...

, called by the English name of Flushing in the book. Ransome made a similar voyage from Harwich to the Netherlands in 1936 and used his personal experience in the book. Ransome's cruises also provided material for another book ''

Secret Water ''Secret Water'' is the eighth book in Arthur Ransome's ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books. It was published on 28 November 1939. This book is set in and around Hamford Water in Essex, close to the resort town of Walton-on-t ...

'' (1939) set in the

Walton Walton may refer to: People * Walton (given name) * Walton (surname) * Susana, Lady Walton (1926–2010), Argentine writer Places Canada * Walton, Nova Scotia, a community ** Walton River (Nova Scotia) *Walton, Ontario, a hamlet United Kingdo ...

backwaters. Ransome sold ''Nancy Blackett'' in 1939 but always said that she was "the best little ship". In 1988, she was found rotting in

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

and subsequently purchased and restored. Following the restoration, she was sold to a private owner, who put her up for sale again in 1996. An appeal to Arthur Ransome fans raised the

asking price Ask price, also called offer price, offer, asking price, or simply ask, is the price a seller states they will accept. The seller may qualify the stated asking price as firm or negotiable. Firm means the seller is implying that the price is fixed ...

and she was purchased and a Trust set up which owns, operates and maintains her. The Nancy Blackett Trust was formed as a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

Accessed 6 December 2018 to preserve and sail her and to promote the sort of sailing activities dear to Ransome. The trust's patron is

Ellen MacArthur Dame Ellen Patricia MacArthur (born 8 July 1976) is a retired English sailor, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in Cowes, Isle of Wight. MacArthur is a successful solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005, ...

. There have been some modern equipment updates to allow for her safe use by Trust members. She is available for sailing trips as well as appearing at maritime festivals and events and events associated with Ransome.

References

{{Reflist

External links

The Nancy Blackett Trust

The Arthur Ransome Society, an organisation devoted to Arthur Ransome with links to other sites

Swallows and Amazons information and news website
Arthur Ransome Individual sailing vessels