The Mrs. Charles Francis Adams Trophy, or Adams Cup for short, was the competition for the United States Women's Sailing Championship. The donor of the award was Francis Lovering Adams the wife of Charles Francis Adams III, former Secretary to the Navy and skipper of the 1920 America's Cup winner Resolute.[1] [2] [3] It had its origins in the 1924 Hodder Cup.[4] The Adams Cup was raced annually until 2011.[5] Now retired, the Mrs. Charles Francis Adams Trophy is on display in the Reading Room of the Tom Morris Library at the National Sailing Hall of Fame.
Ruth Sears was the first winner of the cup followed by Lorna Whittelsley. In 1933, the competition gave birth to the Women's National Yacht Racing Association.[6] [7] That organization was later headed by Adams Cup winner "Leggie" Mertz.[8]
In a sport with hundreds of different classes of boats and a national champion for each, the point of the Adams Cup was to determine an overall champion for the sport of women's sailing in the United States. First run by the Women's National Yacht Racing Association, and later organized by the U.S. Sailing Association, eliminations were held throughout the country, and the finals were raced in a different type of boat each year to eliminate any advantage a sailor from any particular class might otherwise have. Competitors sailed boats provided by the host club, and teams were required to race each boat at the event once so that nobody would have an advantage in terms of equipment, similar to high school and collegiate sailing.
As with national championships in other sports, the top three finishers received gold, silver and bronze medals, respectively. The winner likewise held the Mrs. Charles Francis Adams Cup itself until the following year's champion was crowned.
Sailors from Cohasset Yacht Club won the prize first and the most number of time (9) followed by American Yacht Club who won it eight times.
Today, the United States Adult Sailing Championship, is open to both men and women but people still remember the Adams Cup. In 2016, Gary Jobson, then President of the National Sailing Hall of Fame, commented on the important history of the cup, “The Adams Cup inspired generations of women to participate and excel in the sport of sailboat racing. Collecting and preserving this legacy will keep that history alive.” [9]
List of champions:
| Year | Club | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Amy Kleinschrodt, Sara Hall, Kara Kimbrell | ||
| 2010 | Debbie Probst, Joyce Spring, Monica Jones | ||
| 2009 | Amy Kleinschrodt,Sara Hall, Ashley Hall | ||
| 2008 | Vicki Sodaro, Stephanie Wondolleck, Emily French, Katie Maxim | ||
| 2007 | Betsy Altman, Nancy Heffernan, Vickie Matthews, Marie Hansson | ||
| 2006 | Vicki Sodaro Stephanie Wondolleck Karina Vogen Shelton Emily French | ||
| 2005 | Joni Palmer, Meredith Dodd, Carrie Carpenter | ||
| 2004 | Kathy Irwin, Kerri Cunningham, Nataleigh Vann, Wendy Vann | ||
| 2003 | Joni Palmer, Meredith Dodd, and Carrie Carpenter | ||
| 2002 | Vicki Sodaro, Stephanie Wondolleck, Pamela Healy, Jodi Lee Drewery | ||
| 2001 Cancelled Patriots Cup | Barbara Hawn, Linda McDavitt, Cynthia Beorner, Carolyn Wilsford | ||
| 2000 | Mary Brigden-Snow, Julie Mitchell, Pam Gregory, Stacey Szabo | ||
| 1999 | Palisades, NY | Joan Hurban, Judy Hanlon, Cindy Cox | |
| 1998 | Oakland, CA | Stephanie Wondolleck - San Rafael, Vicki Sodaro - Tiburon, Karina Vogen | |
| 1997 | Mobile, AL | Amy Kleinschrodt, Jackie Gorski, Sara Hall | |
| 1996 | Elaine Parshall, Sally Lane, Mary Coch, Colleen Crawley | ||
| 1995 | Dru Slattery, Martha Quigley Dillon, Linda Epstein, Ellie Schnabel | ||
| 1994 | Ida Lewis Yacht Club | Becky Wilson, Lisa Merrifield, Trice Kilroy, Alix Barton | |
| 1993 | Manhasset Bay Yacht Club | Beth Danilek, Sue Miller, Janet Grapengeter, Nancy Pearson | |
| 1992 | Buffalo Canoe Club | Jody Swanson, Cory Sertl, Abby Ruhlman | |
| 1991 | Newport Yacht Club | Betsy Alison, Betsy McClintock, Marshall Lawson | |
| 1990 | Newport Yacht Club | Betsy Alison, Kristan McClintock, Liz Merrifield, Nancy Hood | |
| 1989 | Buffalo Canoe Club | Jody Swanson, Jill Swanson, Kathryn Ritchie | |
| 1988 | Seattle Yacht Club | Carol Buchan, Cheryl Lanzinger, Libby Johnson, Jean Trucano | |
| 1987 | Seattle Yacht Club | Carol Buchan, Cheryl Lanzinger, Libby Johnson, Jean Trucano | |
| 1986 | South Atlantic Yacht Racing Association | Cathy Chrisman, Ann Boyd, Carolyn Griffith, Janet Scarborough | |
| 1985 | Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association | Cory Fisher, Dina Horwitz, Ramsey Murray, Joan Watts | |
| 1984 | Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association | Betsy Gelenitis, Ellen Reago, Linda Toboada, Patti Jeske | |
| 1983 | Vermilion Boat Club | Heidi Backus, Gretchen B. Loper, Amy B. Riddle, Susan B. Potter | |
| 1982 | Vermilion Boat Club | Heidi Backus, Gretchen B. Loper, Amy B. Riddle | |
| 1981 | Charleston Yacht Club | Ann Boyd Sloger, Carolyn Simmons, Cathy Chrisman, Janet Scarborough | |
| 1980 | Bay-Waveland Yacht Club | Judy McKinney, Charlotte Gordon, Amy Chapman | |
| 1979 | St. Petersburg Yacht Club | Allison Jolly, Susan Blaketer, Janice Robertson, Sue Reischmann | |
| 1978 | Ida Lewis Yacht Club | Bonnie Shore, Yvonne Burns, Bea Grimmitt, Nancy Kaull | |
| 1977 | Bay-Waveland Yacht Club | Cindy Stieffel, Amy Chapman, Judy McKinney | |
| 1976 | Galveston Bay, CA | Ellen Gerloff, Ruthie Maudlin, Jane Baldridge, Rita Matthews | |
| 1975 | Pettipaug Yacht Club | Cindy S. Batchelor, Nan Hull, Carmen Wetmore, Cara Worthington | |
| 1974 | Beachwood Yacht Club | Deborah Freeman, Lynn Campbell, Jennifer Valdes | |
| 1973 | Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club | Timothea Larr, Sheila McCurdy, Beegie Miller | |
| 1972 | Dinghy Club | Sally Lindsay, Alix Smullin, Nancy Hearne | |
| 1971 | Duxbury Yacht Club | Sylvia Shethar Everdell, Pamela O'Day, Mrs. Horace Sawyer, Jr., Daphne Fogg | |
| 1970 | Mantoloking Yacht Club | Jan O'Malley, Patricia O'Malley, Connie Blaise | |
| 1969 | Mantoloking Yacht Club | Jan O'Malley, Patricia O'Malley, Jacqueline Hart | |
| 1968 | Monmouth Boat Club | June Methot, Bette Power, Dede Heron | |
| 1967 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Mrs. W.H. Foulk, Jr., Mrs. Albert G. Preston, Jr., Mrs. A. Whittemore, Sue Ann Shay | |
| 1966 | Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle | Jerie Clark, Mary Anne Easter, Renate McVitti | |
| 1965 | Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club | Timothea Larr, Sarah Glenn Meyer, Patience Outerbridge | |
| 1964 | Lake Geneva Yacht Club | Jane Pegel, Marnie Frank, Nancy Frank | |
| 1963 | American Yacht Club | Allegra Knapp Mertz, Lois Shethar Smith, Betty Duncan, Lucia Elmore | |
| 1962 | Noroton Yacht Club | Susan W. Sinclair, Alexandra W. Falconer, Carolyn McCurdy | |
| 1961 | Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club | Timothea Larr, Sarah Glenn Meyer, Deborah Smith Read | |
| 1960 | Delray Beach (FL) Yacht Club | Pat Duane, Nancie Pearce, Rose Marie Altemus | |
| 1959 | American Yacht Club | Allegra Knapp Mertz, Roseamund Corwin, Betty Duncan, Cindy Matthews | |
| 1958 | American Yacht Club | Nancy Underhill, Roseamund Corwin, Gwendolyn Everett | |
| 1957 | Chicago Yacht Club | Jane Pegel, Michael Sennot Roche, Judy Gale Nye | |
| 1956 | Fort Worth Boat Club | Glenn Hill Lattimore, Diane McFarland, Rose Rector, Jane Mooney | |
| 1955 | Manhasset Bay Yacht Club | Toni Monetti, Chris Drake, Frances Macy, Jill Thompson | |
| 1954 | American Yacht Club | Allegra Knapp Mertz, Beverly Compton, Ellen Kelly | |
| 1953 | Riverside Yacht Club | Judy Webb, Barbara Sheldon, Sandra Gill, Jill Avers | |
| 1952 | Manhasset Bay Yacht Club | Pat Hinman, Toni Monetti, Gwen Van Hagen, Mrs. George R. Hinman | |
| 1951 | Seal Harbor Yacht Club | Jane Smith, Molly Shaw, Polly Hessenbrunch, Anne Rockefeller | |
| 1950 | American Yacht Club | Allegra Knapp Mertz, Roseamund Corwin, Carol Walter, Beverly Compton | |
| 1949 | Portland Yacht Club | Jane McL. Smith, Jane Hughes, Dana Smith, Martha Soule | |
| 1948 | Larchmont Yacht Club | Aileen Bryan, Grace Emmons, Margot Gotte, JoAnne Sandborn | |
| 1947 | American Yacht Club | Syvia Shethar Everdell, Roseamund Corwin, Lois Shethar, Allegra Knapp Mertz | |
| 1946 | Edgartown Yacht Club | Virginia Weston Besse, Adelaide Wolstanholme, Honora Haynes, Mary Edmonds | |
| 1941 | Riverside Yacht Club | Lois McIntyre, Mrs. Frederick T. Allen, Charlotte Mayer, Mrs. Carlton Marsh | |
| 1940 | American Yacht Club | Sylvia Shethar, Roseamund Corwin, Elizabeth Richards | |
| 1939 | American Yacht Club | Sylvia Shethar, Gwendolyn Shethar, Roseamund Corwin, Elizabeth Richards | |
| 1938 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Francis McElwain, Katherin Johnson Fisher, Joan Chapin Waters, Barbara Benson | |
| 1937 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Francis McElwain, Katherine Johnson, Francis Williams, Joan Chapin Waters | |
| 1936 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Francis McElwain, Katherine Johnson, Joan Chapin | |
| 1935 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Francis McElwain, Katherine Johnson, Francis Williams | |
| 1934 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Lorna Whittelsey, Myrtle Whittelsey, Mrs. DuBois, Kitty Kunhardt | |
| 1933 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Ruth Sears, Katherine Johnson, Francis Williams | |
| 1932 | Edgartown Yacht Club | Clara Dinsmore, Jeanne Sargent, Dorothy Morrell | |
| 1931 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Lorna Whittelsey, Helen Willis, Myrtle Whittelsey | |
| 1930 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Lorna Whittelsey, Helen Willis, Myrtle Whittelsey | |
| 1929 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Frances Williams, Fanny C. Howmans, Peggy Little | |
| 1928 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Lorna Whittelsey, Helen Wills, Edith Wills | |
| 1927 | Indian Harbor Yacht Club | Lorna Whittelsey, Helen Wills, Edith Wills | |
| 1926 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Jessie Bancroft, Catherine Reid, Helen Swain | |
| 1925 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Ruth Sears, Ester Sears | |
| 1924 | Cohasset Yacht Club | Ruth Sears, Ester Sears |
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