St. Francis Yacht Club

History

It was founded in 1927 when the members of the San Francisco Yacht Club (the oldest sailing club in the western United States) decided to move their clubhouse out of San Francisco to Belvedere, California, about 13 miles to the north in Marin County. About half of the membership of the San Francisco Yacht Club declined to make the move and instead formed the St. Francis. It has become generally considered to be the most prestigious yacht club in the western United States. Membership in the club is by invitation only.

Clubhouse

The Club hired San Francisco architect Willis Polk to design their clubhouse which was then built on land rented from San Francisco by the Club on the jetty off of Crissy Field in the Marina District, San Francisco, on landfill created for the 1917 Panama Pacific International Exposition. Polk died before the blueprints could be completed but his office finished them. The Mediterranean Revival-style building is the yacht club closest in proximity to the Golden Gate Bridge and enjoys views from the Bridge to Alcatraz Island and beyond. The Golden Gate Yacht Club is situated a few hundred yards further east along the jetty.

Racing

The St. Francis assembled a syndicate to compete for the 2000 Louis Vuitton Cup, with their entry, AmericaOne. Their entry was defeated in the semifinals by Italy's Prada.

The St. Francis sponsors the St. Francis Perpetual Trophy, the Isadore Zellerbach Perpetual Trophy, the City of San Francisco Trophy, the Atlantic Perpetual Trophy, the San Francisco Cup and about ten other annual trophies and cups.

Flagships

The St. Francis has had many flagships over the years including some historic craft.

Satellite clubhouse

The Club maintains a satellite clubhouse on Tinsley Island just west of Stockton, California in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta which is used primarily during summer months, and as a training area for the children of members.

Reciprocity

Like most yacht clubs on the West Coast, the St. Francis is a member of the Pacific Inter-Club Yacht Association, which provides reciprocal privileges between members of hundreds of other yacht clubs. The St. Francis Yacht Club has reciprocal relationships with most accredited yacht clubs and is happy to host their visiting members. The Club does employ a 50 Mile Guest Privilege Limitation Statute, which limits guest privileges only to reciprocal members whose yacht club or residence is located outside of a 50-mile radius from the San Francisco Clubhouse or Tinsley Island. Reciprocal members whose yacht club or place of residence falls within 50 statute miles of the City Clubhouse or Tinsley Island may be granted reciprocal privileges ONLY if they arrive via boat and register at the City Clubhouse docks. When reciprocal members wish to visit the Club, a letter of introduction must be sent on their behalf from their primary yacht club which confirms that they are a member in good standing and are eligible to be granted guest privileges. The Club will require that reciprocal members settle their accounts on a credit card prior to leaving the Club.

St. Francis Yacht Club also offers members reciprocity with a small circle of fine yacht clubs around the world including: The New York Yacht Club, Outrigger Canoe Club, Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, Royal Thames Yacht Club, Société Nautique de Gèneve, Yacht Club de Monaco and Norddeutscher Regatta Verein.

Notable members

The Club has had many notable members in its history