History of Grangemouth Yacht Club
There has been a boating and sailing presence at this location since 1927.
In 1931 a shower of rain drove several men to shelter in a shed on Grangemouth dockside, and while there they got talking about yachting. This led to the formation of The Grangemouth Yacht Club.
The following has been researched by club member Charlie McKerral, with extracts taken from Falkirk Herald archives.
1931 – Second World War
The first Regatta was held on Saturday 1st August 1931, sixteen boats taking part in a ten mile course eastward from the mouth of the Carron to the Hen & Chickens Buoy, thence upriver to Inchbrake Buoy, off Kincardine, returning to the Carron mouth. The race was open only to boats from the newly formed Grangemouth Yachting Club to discover the capabilities of each boat and resulted in “Thelma” (G. Sorensen) being placed 1st with a time of 3 hrs 15 mins 20 secs. 2nd. Wasp (J. Martin) 3 hrs 41 mins 35 secs. 3rd Lady Betty (A. Whyte) 3hrs 51 mins 35 secs.
The club also boasted a rowing section and introduced a four oar racing boat which practiced on Monday nights in the timber basin. The club intended to send this boat to regattas on the Forth and on the Clyde and expected keen competition for places, contemplating obtaining other rowing boats to satisfy member’s enthusiasm for racing.
Membership of the club was given as approaching Ninety and a welcome was extended to anyone interested in yachting and rowing.
On Saturday 29th August 1931 a cruise was held to Kincardine 19 boats taking part. The majority of the boats left the Old Dock gates at 2.30 pm and were joined by the remainder at the River Carron entrance from where they sailed to Kincardine led by the commodore boat.
Upon arriving at Kincardine the members met in a local hall by invitation of the commodore, Mr J.M. Hogg, who in a brief speech welcomed over seventy members and referred to the very successful start the club had and hoped for further attainments in the coming season.
The initial social function of the Yacht club was held on Wednesday 30th December 1931 and took the form of a smoking concert. An extremely large turnout was welcomed by the club President Mr J.M.Hogg and the Vice Commodore Judge Hartley.
The hall in which the smoker took place was described as an old dilapidated shed which the members had converted into very comfortable quarters and decorated in true nautical style. Mr Hogg paid tribute to the members who had worked so assiduously for the club’s formation and expressed gratification at the excellent turnout. He also noted, to a round of applause, that the club had no constitution, no rules and indeed it had no office bearers. It was carried along by the united enthusiasm of its members. The club he noted had developed from sixty young fellows on the first night to a membership of over a hundred a few nights later, the doors on that occasion being closed as the premises were inadequate. Now the club had their own premises the membership stood in the region of 200. In the course of the evening Mr Hogg said that the club wanted to encourage the unemployed to visit the club, where they would get full scope and would be allowed to use the club to the greatest advantage. The President then called upon Judge Hartley to propose the toast”Grangemouth Yachting Club”.
Judge Hartley said it was a very real pleasure for him to be present. He admired the spirit in which the club had been founded and had been renewing his youth among the lads who had been forming The Grangemouth Yacht Club. The club had been built with enthusiasm and hard work, founded on the sacrifice of time and labour of its members. He remarked that the destiny of the club lay in their own hands and wanted them to use the premises and make the club a real success and be the real yachting club on the upper reaches of the Forth. If they had harmony and co-operation among themselves they were bound to make the club a success.
Over the next year a number of concerts and smokers were held to augment club funds these included a Burns Supper and a “splendid entertainment given by Carron Works Recreation Club Troupe of Nigger Minstrels” And on 26th February 1932 Provost J. Burnett White presided over a Grand Concert to raise funds to provide themselves with the necessary materials for their work.
The 1932 season opened on Saturday 21st May with a cruise to Kincardine by seventeen boats. Leaving the Dock Gates at
The season continued with regattas, one trip down the river to the Fife coast below the Forth Bridge taking some of the boats 13 hours, and also with the rowing section who distinguished themselves against crews from Bo’ness and Queensferry in August.
Thus the club continued through the thirties a mix of regattas and rowing section in the summer and social evenings and fund raising nights in the winter.