Elizabeth E Meyer, 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 ...

in 1953. She was instrumental in the restoration of the J Class Yachts beginning with '' Endeavour'' in the mid 1980s. She is married to Michael McCaffrey.

Life

Her parents were medical doctors, a psychiatrist and an epidemiologist. Her grandfather was Eugene Meyer, investment banker and first president of the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...

. He also owned ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' publishing company. Her grandmother was Agnes Ernst Meyer, social activist and journalist. Elizabeth's aunt was

Katharine Graham Katharine Meyer Graham (June 16, 1917 – July 17, 2001) was an American newspaper publisher. She led her family's newspaper, ''The Washington Post'', from 1963 to 1991. Graham presided over the paper as it reported on the Watergate scandal, whi ...

, owner of ''The Washington Post'' during

Watergate The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...

. Meyer attended a Quaker Friends Academy and

Bennington College Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont. Founded in 1932 as a women's college, it became co-educational in 1969. It claims to be the first college to include visual and performing arts as an equal partner in ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

where she studied English. For a time she worked at sail making, also volunteering at a zoo and running a restaurant before starting a building restoration company in 1977. She published ''

Yaahting ''Yaahting: A Parody'' was a 1984 parody of the boating magazine genre, most notably ''Yachting''. It was published by Dreadnaught Publishing, a short lived Massachusetts based company. The main publishing staff were: Publisher was Elizabeth Mey ...

,'' a parody of the magazine ''

Yachting Yachting is the use of recreational boats and ships called ''yachts'' for racing or cruising. Yachts are distinguished from working ships mainly by their leisure purpose. "Yacht" derives from the Dutch word '' jacht'' ("hunt"). With sailboats, t ...

''. She also wrote for ''Nautical Quarterly''. Meyer has been politically active, opposing the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

and being involved in local politics in

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, ...

Yacht Restoration

In 1984 she purchased the J class yacht ''Endeavour'' and began the restoration. She was also instrumental in the restoration of ''

Shamrock V ''Shamrock V'' was the first British yacht to be built to the new J-Class rule. She was commissioned by Sir Thomas Lipton for his fifth America's Cup challenge. Although refitted several times, ''Shamrock'' is the only original J-class never to ...

'' another J, and more than 80 classic yachts. She is president of J-Class Management. She founded the

International Yacht Restoration School IYRS School of Technology & Trades (known as IYRS, from its previous name of the International Yacht Restoration School) is a private nonprofit school with a 3-acre campus on Thames Street in Newport, Rhode Island. IYRS focuses on training highly ...

in 1993 which has taught 400 students in yacht building and restoration. For her efforts in building and yacht restoration she has received the president's award from the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...

. In 2011 she received the Don Turner Award from the

USS Constitution Museum The USS Constitution Museum is located in the Charlestown Navy Yard, which is part of the Boston National Historical Park in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The museum is situated near the ship at the end of Boston's Freedom Trail. The ...

for her work in maritime preservation. From 1975 to 1993 she owned the Concordia yawl, ''Matinicus'' and has authored books on the Ray Hunt designed class. She now sails ''Seminole'', a 1916 Lawley-built 47 ft (14.3m) gaff yawl, bought in 1996 from California unseen for a dollar. She completed its restoration in 2005 and has sailed ''Seminole'' with her husband over 18,000 miles.

References

External links

Yachting Magazine Article

Elizabeth Meyer - Queen of the J Class, Classic Boat Article

J Class.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meyer, Elizabeth 1953 births Yachting Living people Bennington College alumni People from Baltimore People from Newport, Rhode Island Foxcroft School alumni