EAST DONYLAND / ROWHEDGE
s.y. NAHMA
Brothers Robert Goelet (1841-1899) and Ogden Goelet (1846-1897) were the sons of Robert R. Goelet whose fortune was founded on real estate. They expanded their inherited empire in Manhattan and Newport, Rhode Island, were very much a part of high New York society and were founders of the New York Metropolitan Opera. Their neighbouring mansions at Ochre Point, Newport, were some of the grandest "cottages" ever built in that summer retreat of the American elite. Ogden owned the yacht Mayflower and Robert had the Nahma constructed.
Confusingly, Ogden had a son named Robert Wilson Goelet, and Robert a son named Robert Walton Goelet; the latter is referred to most often in the following articles.
NEW YORK TIMES - 17 October 1897 - “THE NAHMA COMING TO NEW YORK - Mr. Robert Goelet of New York has ordered his new steam yacht Nahma, 1,800 tons, home from Clyde, where she was built, to New York. Various dates have been given for her departure, the difficulty being the completion of a yacht in which the art of internal decoration is being exhausted. The recent act of Congress, which penalizes American owners in possession of British-built yachts, has damped down rumors of new American yachts for Mr. G.L. Watson.... Capt. Churchill of Brightlingsea, Essex, who is in command of the Nahma, has a crew of seventy, mostly recruited out of the Colne River.”
NYT - 29 October 1897 - “ROBERT GOELET’S NEW YACHT - Newport, Oct. 28. - Robert Goelet’s new steam yacht Nahma, Capt. W.E. Churchill, arrived here at 4 o’clock this afternoon from Scotland on her maiden trip. The yacht left Gourock on Monday, Oct. 18. Capt. Churchill says he encountered nasty weather and head seas, but the vessel behaved splendidly and stood the shaking up well.
The yacht will hail from Newport. Mr. Goelet, who is in New York, was notified of her arrival. The vessel was entered under the old tariff, and pays no duty. Her lines are identical with those of the Mayflower, built for the late Ogden Goelet, Robert’s brother.
The Nahma was built by the Clydebank Engineering and Shipbuilding Company from designs furnished by George L. Watson of Glasgow, the designer of Valkyrie III. She is one of the most magnificently appointed yachts in the world, and there are but seven larger steam yachts afloat. She is built entirely of steel, on the spar-deck principle, and has a clipper stem and a square stern. From the foremast to within fifty feet of the taffrail extends the promenade, or boat, deck, which has a length of 190 feet. The vessel is schooner rigged, each mast being in one length. She has a standing bowsprit, and in all respects her rig is most smart in appearance. She is painted white, with a green boot top, and, with her great array of portholes, her fine set of boats, including a steam launch, and her large funnels, ventilators, and awning supports, which are of metal tubes, she presents a handsome appearance.
She is subdivided into several water-tight compartments by seven bulkheads, all of which are cemented. Her dimensions are as follows:- Length on load water line, 275 feet; length between perpendiculars, 288.8 feet; and from over the figurehead to taffrail 320 feet; breadth 36.7 feet, with a depth molded of 17.7 feet. Her tonnage is 969.79 and 1,739.83, net and gross, respectively, and 1,844, according to the Thames yacht measurement.
The Nahma is equipped with electric lighting, heating, and ventilating devices and a refrigerating machine. She is propelled by two triple expansion engines of 4,250 horse power. On her trial trip she developed a sustained speed of 16¾ knots per hour. The yacht mounts two Hotchkiss quick-firing guns and carries a stand of carbines, and among her crew of seventy-two men is a gunner. She is commanded by Capt. Churchill, who was formerly in the Cunard service.
It is the intention of the owner to go on a cruise to the West Indies, and thence to the Mediterranean for the yachting season there early next year.”
NYT - 7 November 1897 - “MR. GOELET’S NEW YACHT - Mr. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma, which is now in these waters, is one of the handsomest yachts afloat, and in construction and interior decorations is very much like the Mayflower, which was built for the late Ogden Goelet. She was built by the Clydebank Shipbuilding and Engineering Company from designs by G.L. Watson.
The space in the vessel has been divided with great care. The accommodations for the owner and his friends are of the most sumptuous description, and French decorators were employed to make the different rooms as artistic as possible. The drawing room is in white, with marble mantelpieces, and the furniture is gilded. The dining saloon is finished in oak. The staterooms of Mr. and Mrs. Goelet are beautifully decorated, and connected with each is a tiled bathroom. Adjoining these rooms is the private study, an unusually well-lighted and well-ventilated apartment. On the deck below these rooms are staterooms for the son and daughter of the owner and cabins for six guests. There is also a cabin for a doctor.
The yacht is lighted throughout by electricity, and in addition to two powerful search lights she has side lights, masthead lights, and portable and movable lights in saloons and staterooms. Electricity is also used for fans, heaters, and in the pantry.
The Nahma’s engines are of triple-expansion type. There are two sets, capable of indicating 4,250 horse power. The diameters of the cylinders are 22½, 38, and two 40 inches on each engine, with a piston stroke of 27 inches. Steam is supplied at a pressure of 169 pounds by two double-headed return tubular boilers, to which are fitted forced-draught appliances. The grate surface is over 200 square feet, and the heating surface over 6,000 square feet, while the nominal horse power is 236. There are numerous auxiliary engines, including a refrigerating plant, duplicate electrical machinery, as well as a large battery of accumulators. In her trial trip on the Clyde last July the mean speed attained for several hours’ continuous run was 16¾ knots an hour, which is equal to 19.288 statute miles an hour.
The yacht is schooner rigged and has a very natty appearance. She is fitted with steam and hand steering gear, a steam windlass, and mounts two Hotchkiss quick-firing guns. She is commanded by Capt. Churchill, and has a crew of seventy-two all told.
It is Mr. Goelet’s intention to cruise in Southern waters this Winter, and early next year the yacht will cross the ocean for the Mediterranean, when her owner will witness the yacht racing.
Compared with other yachts, the Nahma is only 340 tons smaller than W.K. Vanderbilt’s Valiant, and about double the size of John Jacob Astor’s Nourmahal. She was launched last February, and since that time has been in the hands of the interior fitters and decorators.”
Nahma 1897
NYT - 9 April 1898 - “GOELETS AND A YACHTING TRIP - The Nahma Obliged to Coal at Fall River Instead of Newport - Newport, R.I., April 8.- Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma will go to Fall River to coal up, and on Tuesday she will sail for Scotland to have slight alterations made and certain parts which were not finished last Fall completed. The story that the Government has an option on most of the coal in Newport is incorrect, and resulted from the fact that Mr. Goelet was unable to get the Nahma coaled here.
The truth is that the yacht requires 380 tons to fill her bunkers, and no Newport dealer could supply that amount. Mr. Goelet engaged a cargo of coal through a Newport dealer some days ago, but changed his plans and was obliged, therefore, to countermand the order.
Later he returned to his original idea, but no barge could then be secured to transport it to this city. Mr. Goelet wished to purchase his coal here, and was greatly disappointed when he found no dealer could provide an amount sufficient to fill the bunkers of the Nahma. Mr. and Mrs. Goelet and family will sail on the Nahma.”
NYT - 13 April 1898 - “THE NAHMA SAILS FOR SCOTLAND - Newport, April 12.- The steam yacht Nahma finished coaling at Fall River Monday, and sailed for Scotland this evening. Mr. and Mrs. Robert Goelet did not sail on her.”
NYT - 26 April 1898 - “AMERICAN YACHTS ABROAD - The Nahma Reaches Greenock.... Greenock, April 25.- Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma, which sailed from Newport, R.I., on April 12, arrived here on Saturday last.”
THE TIMES (LONDON) - Monday 2 May 1898 - “YACHTING - The Duke d’Abruzzi’s racing cutter Bona arrived at Brightlingsea from the Mediterranean on Saturday after a passage of 26 days from Nice. She left Gibraltar on the 13th ult., and Captain Sycamore reports a succession of head winds. The Bona was flying 12 winning flags, and she will be refitted at once for the coming racing season. The Duke d’Abruzzi, who was last summer mountaineering in Alaska, will join the Bona before the Thames matches and go round the coast in his yacht.
The war [Spanish-American] has brought the cruises of a number of American yachts to a premature close, and amongst the vessels in the Mediterranean ports are the Valiant, s.s., 2,184 tons, Mr. W.K. Vanderbilt; Varuna, s.s., 1,564 tons, Mr. E. Higgins; Arcturua, s.s., 474 tons, Mr. R. Stuyvesant; Sultana, s.s., 400 tons, Mr. J.R. Drexel; and Andria, s.s., 433 tons, Mr. J.E. Brookes. The Margarita, s.s., 1,322 tons, Mr. A.J. Drexel, has arrived at Southampton, and the Nahma, s.s., 1,806 tons, Mr. R. Goelet, has reached the Clyde.
NYT - 4 December 1898 - “Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma is at the yards of the Clydebank Engineering and Shipbuilding Company at Glasgow having some slight alterations made and being overhauled and painted. She is to be fitted out for a cruise in the Mediterranean, and will be there by March 1.”
NYT - 28 April 1899 - “The news of the death at Nice yesterday from heart failure of Mr. Robert Goelet did not excite any great surprise in the clubs last evening. It was known that Mr. Goelet had been failing all Winter, and recent letters received from him spoke discouragingly of his condition. Much regret was expressed at the news, for Mr. Goelet was very popular among his intimates, and was generally liked and respected in the club and society worlds. He was a good sport, an excellent fisherman, and a devoted yachtsman. He will be greatly missed at Newport, and especially at the old club Reading Room, of which he was a Governor, and where his word was law. His death throws quite a large family connection into mourning, including the Warrens and Wilsons, and will thus affect the coming Newport season. It is not yet known whether Mr. Goelet died on his steam yacht Nahma, on which he had lived all Winter. If so, it will prove a curious coincidence, as his brother, Ogden Goelet, died aboard on his steam yacht, Mayflower, as will be recalled, two years ago.”
NYT - 29 April 1899 - “DEATH OF ROBERT GOELET - Body to be Brought to the United States on Board the Steam Yacht Nahma. Naples, April. 28.- The body of Robert Goelet, late of New York City, who died here yesterday on board his steam yacht Nahma, will be left on the vessel and be taken to the United States.
Robert Goelet’s death, which occurred in Naples on Thursday, was commented upon with regret and expressions of cordial esteem by many New York business men yesterday. Besides his large real estate holdings Mr. Goelet had important interests in several different branches of business. He was known in investment circles as usually ready to aid in the promotion of any project or industry that he was convinced would be permanently advantageous to New York. He was a stock-holder in the Consolidated Gas Company and was interested in the formation of the East River Gas Company.
In the division of the Goelet estate, which occurred some time before Robert Goelet’s departure for Europe, realty valued by expert real estate men at $70,000,000 or $75,000,000 was amicably and evenly divided between the estates of Robert and Ogden Goelet. Some of the pieces of property allotted to Robert Goelet were the Hotel Imperial, the Knickerbocker Theatre, the Murray Hill Theatre, in Lexington Avenue; the Grand Central palace, the large building formerly occupied by Sherry at fifth Avenue and Thirty-seventh Street, the Kimball Building, at Whitehall, Stone, and Bridge Streets; the property on the south side of Bleeker Street with a frontage of 125 feet on Broadway and extending to Mercer Street; block of buildings on the east side of Third Avenue, extending from Forty-seventh to Forty-eighth Street, five lots on the northwest corner of Fifty-seventh Street and Third Avenue, the entire block, partly improved, bounded by Eighth and St. Nicholas Avenues and One Hundred and Thirty-fifth and One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Streets; all that portion of the block between Fifth and Madison Avenues and Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh Streets, exclusive of the Windsor Hotel property; the northwest corner of Broadway and Seventeenth Street, where the elder Robert Goelet lived.
The Hotel Walton on Philadelphia also belongs to the Robert Goelet estate. The Hotel Cadillac and the Judge Building, at Fifth Avenue and Sixteenth Street, belong to the Ogden Goelet estate.
John D. Crimmins, who knew both Robert and Ogden Goelet from their boyhood, said yesterday:
“Several years ago, when Robert and Ogden were comparatively young men, one of them said to me that the revenues from their real estate possessions was sufficient to yield each of them $1,000,000 annually. That was so long ago that most of the property must be much more valuable now than it was then. Robert Goelet was a very intelligent and wide-awake man. He took an active interest in the things that were happening, and was always ready to help along a good cause. Twenty years ago he used to attend public meetings whenever municipal matters were discussed and he made speeches. He got so he could make a pretty good speech. He always knew what he wanted to say, and he expressed himself very clearly.”
NYT - 2 May 1899 - “Ten days ago the Robert Goelets were on the Nahma in the harbor of Cannes and were entertaining, and the English prints are filled with accounts of their kind hospitality and of the luxury of the Goelet yacht. What seems to have surprised them most was that each cabin had its own bathroom attached.”
NYT - 6 May 1899 - “The steam yacht Nahma is expected to arrive here about May 20 with the remains of Robert Goelet. Services will be held on board, the Rev. Mr. Stone of Trinity Church officiating, and afterward the Nahma will proceed to Wickford, where the remains will be transferred to one of the Shore Line trains, en route to Woodlawn Cemetery, where the body will be interred. Later Mrs. Goelet and her two children will come to Newport and remain at the Goelet cottage for the Summer.”
NYT - 20 May 1899 - “BURIAL OF ROBERT GOELET - Body to be Interred at Woodlawn Cemetery, Newport. Newport, May 19.- Robert Goelet, son of the late Robert Goelet, and Mrs. George Henry Warren, mother of Mrs. Goelet, with Commodore Elbridge T. Gerry, who arrived to-night on the Electra from New York, are awaiting the arrival of the yacht Nahma, bearing the remains of Robert Goelet, from Europe.
Upon the arrival of the Nahma final arrangements will be made by Mrs. Goelet. A casket came from New York to-day to replace the one now in use on the yacht. It is reported that the yacht will dock at one of the wharves and land the remains, which will be taken to Trinity Church for the services, after which the body will be taken to Woodlawn and entombed.
George Griswold Haven and Royal Phelps Carroll are here as the representatives of the New York Yacht Club to attend the funeral, and will be two of the bearers.”
NYT - 21 May 1899 - “ARRIVAL OF MR. GOELET’S BODY DELAYED - Newport, May 20.- Word was received here to-night to the effect that the yacht Nahma, bearing the body of Robert Goelet, has been delayed at Bermuda, and will probably not arrive here until the end of the coming week. Robert W. Goelet is now the guest of Commodore Gerry on board the Electra.”
NYT - 26 May 1899 - “YACHT NAHMA AT NEWPORT - The Body of Robert Goelet Brought Home for Burial - Newport, May 25.- The steam yacht Nahma, with the body of Robert Goelet on board, passed Fort Adams at the entrance of the harbor this morning. The flag of the yacht was at half mast.
The Nahma left Naples, where Mr. Goelet died, on May 4 and stopped at Gibraltar and Bermuda, leaving the latter place last Tuesday morning. The boat was boarded by the Health Officers and Custom House officials immediately upon her arrival.
During the morning arrangements were made to hold the funeral services at Trinity Church Saturday morning at 9:30, the Rev. Henry Morgan Stone, rector of the church, officiating. The interment will be at Woodlawn Cemetery, New York.”
NYT - 28 May 1899 - “FUNERAL OF ROBERT GOELET - Service at Trinity Church, Newport, Attended by Many Cottagers - Burial at Woodlawn Cemetery, Newport, May 27.- The funeral service over the body of Robert Goelet was held at Trinity Church to-day. The body was brought here from Italy on the yacht Nahma. The casket was brought ashore to-day in the Captain’s gig, and was accompanied by eight seamen, who acted as under bearers, the remainder of the yacht’s crew coming in other boats.
Mrs. Goelet and the funeral party met the body at the yacht club landing, and, escorted by the yacht’s company, proceeded to the church.
The service was conducted by Bishop MrVickar and the Rev. Henry Morgan Stone, the rector of the church. A large cross of white roses and white pinks was placed upon the casket, and there were many other floral offerings in the church.
The pallbearers were George G. Williams, president of the Chemical National Bank, New York; George G. De Witt, Adrian Iselin, George Haven, Stanford White, Phillip H. Minis, Francis B. Riggs, Arthur D. Weekes, Henry A. Taylor, Henry A. Nicholas, T. Firth, Jr., and William Berriam. Many of the Summer residents and citizens of Newport were in the congregation.
After the service the body was taken by special train over the New Haven Road to New York for interment in Woodlawn Cemetery.
The body of Mr. Goelet arrived at Woodlawn Station by special train at 4:30 o’clock yesterday afternoon, and was at once placed in a hearse and driven to the Goelet mausoleum on Central Avenue, completed only a few days ago.
The casket, which was inclosed in a box of American oak, was taken upon the shoulders of six of the crew of the Nahma. Six more of the crew, under command of Capt. Harvey, formed a guard about the casket, and, followed by the widow, who leaned on the arm of her son, and the pall bearers, the party entered the tomb. There were no ceremonies whatever at the tomb, the body being placed in one of the vaults and sealed up. The body of Ogden Goelet, which has been lying in the receiving vault at Woodlawn since his death, was also placed in the tomb.
The mausoleum, which, is one of the finest at Woodlawn, cost about $100,000. It is built of white granite in the classic style of architecture, with Ionic pillars. the arched doorway, which faces south, is reached by a flight of six steps, and is guarded by gates and heavy bronze doors. The interior of the tomb is of Tennessee marble, and there are places for thirty bodies on the main floor, and for thirty more in the vault beneath. The ceiling is vaulted, and inlaid with marble of various colors. Two fine stained glass windows light the interior. There is little decoration on the exterior of the tomb. The pediment, which is a solid piece of granite, weighs over twenty-two tons. The capstone of the tomb weighs thirteen tons.”
NYT - 4 June 1899 - “THE DEFENDER AT NEWPORT - Trip Down the Bay Showed the Yacht Has Lost None of Her Speed. Newport, June 3.- The [America’s Cup] yacht Defender arrived from Bristol this evening. Before sailing for New York, it is expected that she will have a number of tuning up trials.
The trip down the bay, which was as smooth as a mill pond, demonstrated that the yacht had lost none of her old speed. Under a jib, staysail, and mainsail, she made excellent headway, despite the fact that there was not a strong breeze. The naphtha launch May followed the Defender from Bristol as a tender. The Defender arrived without her topmast set, which was shipped shortly after 8 o’clock this evening. W. Butler Duncan was at the helm during her trip here. The yacht came to anchor astern the Nahma, near Fort Adams.”
NYT - 6 June 1899 - “ROBERT GOELET’S WILL FILED - Widow Receives the Nahma, New York and Newport Houses for Life, and $200,000 a Year. Newport, June 5.- The will of Robert Goelet was filed for probate here to-day. It covers twenty-one pages of closely written legal cap, and, after making provision for certain bequests for the widow’s support during her lifetime, divides the balance of the estate between the son, Robert Walton Goelet, and the daughter, Beatrice. Harriett W. Goelet, the widow; Robert, the son, when he reaches the age of twenty-one, and George G. De Witt of New York are appointed executors and trustees, with full power and without bonds.
To Mrs. Goelet is given the steam yacht Nahma and her fittings, all household furniture, carriages, horses, pictures, works of art, &c.; also a life interest in the house on Fifth Avenue, New York, and the Newport cottage, the box in the Metropolitan Opera House, and an income of $200,000 a year. To his daughter Beatrice is given the Tuxedo House, and, after her mother’s death, the Fifth Avenue House and the opera box. To his son Robert is given the Restigouche fishing house, the trotting horses, the Hotel Imperial, the San Carlo, and the Winchester, on Broadway, and the Newport estate on his mother’s death.
All the residue of the estate, including personal property, is left to trustees for the testator’s son and daughter, under conditions named in the will. In case of the death of the daughter without heirs, her share is to go to the brother.”
Also - “The News of Newport - The yacht Nahma will sail to-morrow for Scotland, and will lay up until Mrs. Goelet wishes to use her. Mrs. Goelet and her family will pass the season at her cottage on the cliffs.”
NYT - 8 June 1899 - “NAHMA SAILS FOR ENGLAND - The steam yacht Nahma, which belonged to the late Robert Goelet and recently brought his body home to Newport, sailed yesterday afternoon for England, to be laid up for a year.”
NYT - 4 August 1899 - NEW YORK YACHT CLUB MEETS - Several Members Elected, Including the Widow of Robert Goelet - An adjourned meeting of the New York Yacht Club was held yesterday to elect to membership a number of candidates whose names were not presented in time for action at the last regular meeting. The boat owners will now be able to take part in the Club’s cruise. The new members are.... and Mrs. Henrietta Goelet, who becomes a flag member. Mrs. Goelet is the fifth woman admitted to the club. She is the widow of Robert Goelet, who owned the steam yacht Nahma, which may now continue to fly the flag of the New York Yacht Club.”
NYT - 13 August 1899 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet, accompanied by her children, will return to England in late September, and on her steam yacht Nahma will cruise in the Mediterranean during the Fall and Winter.”
NYT - 26 November 1899 - “Mrs. Goelet’s Nahma is being repaired and altered on the Clyde, and is fitting out for a Mediterranean cruise.”
NYT - 13 January 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet will sail early next month for Europe, and will proceed at once to the Riviera. She has ordered her steam yacht Nahma to meet her at Nice about Feb. 15, and will then cruise along the Mediterranean until late Spring.”
THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN - 17 February 1900 - “The American steam yacht Nahma, 2,000 tons, owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet, of New York, was to have sailed on Thursday from the Clyde for the Mediterranean, but could not, owing to the severe gale.”
NYT - 24 February 1900 - “The crew employed by Mrs. Robert Goelet for her Spring cruise on the Nahma in the Mediterranean have gone to Scotland to join the yacht there. Mrs. Goelet leaves shortly for Europe. She will embark on her yacht at Southampton, going directly to the Riviera.”
NYT - 2 March 1900 - “Yacht Nahma at Cannes - Cannes, March 1.- Mrs. Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma arrived here to-day.”
NYT - 9 March 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet is soon expected at Cannes, where her yacht Nahma will meet her. Eugene Higgins, on the Varuna, has left Nice for Tunis.”
NYT - 18 March 1900 - “The Nahma is awaiting at Cannes the arrival of Mrs. Ogden Goelet, Miss. Goelet, and Mrs. Richard Irvin, who sailed this week. The yacht had a very rough time in the Bay of Biscay, and was nearly wrecked.”
NYT - 18 April 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet, Mrs. Richard Irvin, and Miss. Goelet are cruising in the Adriatic on Mrs. Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma.”
NYT - 24 April 1900 - “A small half-rater, with fin-keel and mahogany body, was launched from the Herreshoff yards, at Bristol, Wednesday. The new boat is intended for racing in European waters, and is to be known as the Mishe-Nahma. She will shortly be brought to New York, and at this port will be crated and shipped by steamship to Gibraltar. Gossip at Bristol has it that she is to be met at Gibraltar by the big steam yacht Nahma, owned by the Robert Goelet estate, aboard which she will be carried during the Summer.”
NYT - 13 May 1900 - “IN THE BRISTOL YARDS - The 21-footer Mishe Nahma of the fin-keel type had a trial upward of two weeks ago, and was afterward rigged and cased up in a special box to be sent across the ocean. She was taken out of the box the first of the week, had the fin bolted on, was rigged, and had two more trials on Thursday. It was blowing stiff from the northeast at the time, yet she carried whole mainsail and small forestaysail. Running off before the wind a couple of miles, her sheets were rounded in for the beat to windward. It was a pretty rough time, the large mainsail heeling her over so that the swirl of water was almost even with her lee cockpit coaming. She is a fast footer and wonderfully quick in stays. She is to remain in Bristol for a while.”
NYT - 20 May 1900 - “Mrs. Ogden Goelet and Miss. Goelet have returned to Paris and are at their new hotel, which they have leased from the estate of Dr. Evans. Mrs. Robert Goelet is still cruising on Nahma, near the Dalmatian coast.”
NYT - 14 June 1900 - “Mrs. Irvin was at Algiers, in the beginning of the week, cruising on the Nahma with Mrs. Robert Goelet.”
NYT - 15 June 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet, Miss. Beatrice Goelet, and Mrs. Richard Irvin, Jr., have sailed from Algiers in the Nahma for Portsmouth, England. Mrs. Goelet and Miss. Goelet will pass part of the Summer in England, and afterward will come to Newport for a few weeks in the Autumn.”
THE TIMES (LONDON) - Saturday 4 August 1900 - Nahma had already arrived at Cowes for the yachting.
NYT - 7 August 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet has arrived off Cowes, the Isle of Wight, in her yacht, the Nahma. She is entertaining a large party on board.”
NYT - 10 August 1900 - “It seems that at the Isle of Wight the Americans are doing all the entertaining. The Court is in deep mourning for the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and there are no dances of any kind. Mrs. Robert Goelet has been there on the Nahma, but she is not entertaining, except in a very quiet way, on account of the death of her sister, Miss Warren, about a fortnight ago.”
NYT - 12 August 1900 - COWES WEEK - No visitors to this exclusive place are more warmly greeted than are the owners of American boats. Imposing as was the Nahma, as she floated directly off the clubhouse, a Chicago gentleman’s yacht was scarcely less conspicuous. This was the Utowana, owned by Allison V. Armour, whose crew of Lascars with red fezzes and red and blue jerseys are the most conspicuous picture of the waterside.”
NYT - 14 August 1900 - “ROYALTY VISITS MRS. GOELET’S YACHT - London, Aug. 13.- The Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duke and Duchess of York, and Princess Victoria of Wales to-day visited Mrs. Ogden Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma at Cowes.”
NYT - 6 September 1900 - “NOTES FOR YACHTSMEN - An American yacht, Mrs. Robert Goelet’s Nahma, was the largest pleasure craft at Cowes during race week.”
NYT - 25 September 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet’s large steam yacht Nahma, will be laid up for the Winter on the Clyde.”
NYT - 19 December 1900 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma, which has been refitted on the Clyde, will sail shortly for Cannes, where she will be boarded by her owner’s family and a party. After a Mediterranean cruise, it is likely that the Nahma will voyage to China and Japan.”
NYT - 27 January 1901 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet will shortly sail for Europe, and will take a cruise on the Riviera in her yacht, the Nahma. Her departure has been hastened by the death of her mother, Mrs. George Henry Warren.”
NYT - 16 February 1901 - Mrs. Robert Goelet and Miss. Goelet will sail this morning on the Kaiserin Maria Theresa for Genoa. The Nahma has been placed in commission and is awaiting Mrs. Goelet and her daughter at Nice. There will be a cruise in the Mediterranean. Accompanying Mrs. Goelet is her brother, Lloyd Warren. Mrs. Goelet and Miss. Goelet will not return before next season. Miss Goelet may then make her debut.”
NYT - 4 March 1901 - “THE NAHMA ARRIVES AT PALMA - Palma, Island of Majorca, March 3.- Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht, the Nahma arrived here to-day with a party of American tourists, who will visit the island. The Prefect received them most cordially, and gave a dinner in their honour.”
NYT - 10 April 1901 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet has left Cannes in her yacht Nahma, and will pass a few weeks in Sicily. She arrived at Palermo on Monday.”
NYT - 23 April 1901 - “YACHT NAHMA AT CONSTANTINOPLE. London, April 22.- The American steam yacht Nahma, Mrs. Robert Goelet owner, from Palermo, passed up the Dardanelles to-day.”
NYT - 9 June 1901 - “In Paris are both Mrs. Ogden Goelet and Mrs. Robert Goelet. The latter has been at the Hotel Ritz. She has just returned from a long yachting cruise in the Nahma.”
NYT - 21 June 1901 - “OPENING OF KIEL REGATTA - Kiel, June 20.- The Kiel regatta opened to-day with fair weather and a light wind.... The arrival of Mrs. Robert Goelet and party on her yacht Nahma created a sensation, as the yacht was wholly unexpected at Kiel. Much interest was manifested when Mrs. R. Goelet’s small boat, the Mishe Nahma, was entered for the Emperor William Prize Contest, notwithstanding the fact that, according to the governing rules, it was too late for such an entry.”
NYT - 24 June 1901 - “THE KAISER VISITS AN AMERICAN. Berlin, June 23.- Emperor William yesterday paid a long visit on board Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma. “
NYT - 2 July 1901 - “Emperor William was extremely cordial toward Americans during the Kiel races. He visited and dined on board Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma and entertained the Goelets at luncheon on board the imperial yacht Hohenzollern.”
NYT - 3 July 1901 - “EMPEROR HONORS MRS. ROBERT GOELET - Berlin, July 2.- At the invitation of Emperor William, the party of Mrs. Robert Goelet on the steam yacht Nahma have started on a cruise to Neufahrwasser, Dantzig, on the Vistula, Marienberg, &c. All the local military and civic authorities have been instructed by the Emperor to show every consideration to the American visitors.”
NYT - 8 July 1901 - “ST. PETERSBURG, July 7.- Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht, the Nahma, has arrived here...”
NYT - 30 July 1901 - “CHRISTIANIA, July 29.- The American steam yacht Nahma, having on board Mrs. Robert Goelet, the Duchess de Luynes, and a party of friends, has arrived here.”
NYT - 10 August 1901 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet arrived at Havre this week on her yacht, the Nahma, and she will sail for this country this week.”
NYT - 1 September 1901 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet was one of the last arrivals at Dinard. She reached there in the Nahma, and was the recipient of much attention.”
NYT - 5 September 1901 - NEWPORT, Sept. 5.- “The steam yacht Nahma, having on board Mrs. Robert Goelet and a party of friends, arrived in the harbor shortly before noon to-day, having made a quick run from Southampton. Mrs. Goelet went to her villa.”
Also - “Mrs. Robert Goelet, who has been spending the Summer cruising in the Nahma, arrived at Newport yesterday on the yacht. Mrs. Goelet brings a large party of friends over for the [America’s] cup races. The Nahma has made a long journey during the Spring and Summer, having been in the Riviera and then up the Spanish and French coasts and north to the Baltic and to St. Petersburg. The Duchess de Luynes was one of Mrs. Goelet’s guests on the cruise. Since then the Nahma has been at Cowes and Dinard.”
NYT - 24 September 1901 - “THE NEWS OF NEWPORT - Newport, Sept. 23.- There was a large exodus of Summer residents from Newport to-day, all going to New York to witness the coming cup races.... The steam yacht Nahma sailed this morning for New York with Mrs. Robert Goelet, Miss. Goelet, and Robert W. Goelet on board.”
NYT - 27 September 1901 - “The Nahma, Mrs. Robert Goelet’s yacht, took her passengers on at East Thirty-fifth Street”... to avoid the crowds at the Twenty-eighth Street landing.
NYT - 29 September 1901 - The procession of boats heading to the starting line for the first America’s Cup race; “...out of the curtain of fog in the narrows.... the snow-white Nahma... “
s.y. Nahma at the America's Cup races, New York, 1901
NYT - 31 January 1902 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet will sail next week for the Riviera. She has a party to sail with her on the Nahma and will make a cruise in Southern waters, and afterward will go to the English and Scottish coasts.”
NYT - 12 February 1902 - “MISS BEATRICE GOELET DEAD - Only Daughter of the late Robert Goelet Succumbs to Attack of Pneumonia. Miss. Beatrice Goelet, who was in her seventeenth year, died yesterday afternoon at 591 Fifth Avenue. A week ago she was attacked with measles, and later pneumonia of the pernicious type that has prevailed this Winter appeared. She was attended by Drs. Kinnicut, Delafield, and Potter, and a crisis in her case was reached on Monday, when it was doubted if she would survive the night. She lingered until 3 P.M. yesterday. When the end came her mother and brother, Robert Goelet, were with her. Her passing away is regarded as an acutely sad affliction to her relatives and friends, and hundreds of callers expressed their sympathy last evening by leaving cards at the Goelet mansion. The funeral, which will be strictly private, will be at her late home to-day. Interment will be in the Goelet family vault, at Woodlawn.
Miss. Goelet was the only daughter of the late Robert Goelet and Harriet Warren, the daughter of the late George Henry Warren. She was the younger of two children. A brother, Robert Walton Goelet, who has just reached his majority, survives, with his mother.
Miss. Beatrice Goelet was one of the greatest heiresses in New York society, in which her début would not have been made for several Winters..... For a number of years the Robert Goelets went abroad periodically. Since Robert Goelet’s death, Mrs. Goelet and her daughter have made several cruises on their yacht, the Nahma, selecting the Southern Seas in Winter. Last Summer they made a famous cruise in the Baltic Sea, arriving at Newport in August. The Nahma was waiting at Alexandria, Egypt, this last week, as it was the intention of Mrs. Goelet to have sailed this week from New York with her daughter for their Winter cruise.”
NYT - 16 February 1902 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet will go for a long cruise on the Nahma, which has been waiting for some weeks for her at Alexandria.”
NYT - 20 May 1902 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet, who is on the Nahma, is coming back to America.”
NYT - 29 June 1902 - KIEL - “His Majesty [The German Emperor] called on Mrs. Robert Goelet, on the Nahma, Thursday. She, following custom, first left her cards on board the Imperial yacht Hohenzollern. The Emperor was jolly and chatty while on Mrs. Goelet’s yacht. He remarked that he had been on board many yachts, but the Nahma was the finest he had seen.”
NYT - 30 January 1903 - “MRS. GOELET’S YACHT AT CANNES - Cannes, France. Jan. 29.- The American steam yacht Nahma (owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet) has arrived here.”
NYT - 17 February 1903 - “AMERICAN YACHTS IN SAN REMO RACES. An imposing array of American steam yachts is entered for the ocean race of the San Remo regatta. All ocean-going steam yachts are eligible, and the American yachts entered are the finest of their class. They are Anthony J. Drexel’s Margarita, which is chartered by Charles M. Schwab; Howard Gould’s Niagara, James Gordon Bennett’s Lysistrata, Eugene Higgins’s Varuna, J. Arthur Hinckley’s Calanthe, the Nahma, belonging to Mrs. Robert Goelet, and Cornelius Vanderbilt’s North Star, which is now being refitted on the Clyde.”
NYT - 13 May 1903 - “CORFU, May 12.- The American steam yacht Nahma, owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet of New York, has arrived here.”
NYT - 19 May 1903 - “MRS. GOELET TRIUMPHED. Her Yacht Nahma, Halted in the Dardanelles as a Warship, Eventually Was Allowed to Proceed. Washington, May 18.- The State Department yesterday made public an account of how Mrs. Goelet’s yacht Nahma three weeks ago successfully passed the Dardanelles and steamed through a maze of Turkish red tape.
On April 27 Mrs. Goelet with a party of New York friends entered the Dardanelles on her yacht Nahma. The Nahma carries two six-pounders mounted forward and aft, “for saluting purposes.” When the sentinels on the Turkish fortresses caught the outlines of these guns under their tarpaulin coverings there was a rushing to and fro, signals flashed back and forth, and soon a shot plunged across the Nahma’s bow and the yacht hove to.
Mrs. Goelet had a dinner engagement in Constantinople for which she had already broken all speed ordinances and she did not like interference by Turkish officers with her plans.
The officers were polite, but firm. The Nahma was a warship, witness the six-pounders, and to such the passage was closed. Two days of delay followed. Mrs. Goelet demanded that Minister Leishman secure from the Sultan respect and proper reparation for her broken dinner engagement and a passage for the Nahma.
Although an extensively married man, Abdul Hamid is not without a sense of humor. At any rate, the Nahma, six-pounders and all, was allowed to steam on at the end of two days as a yacht and not as a warship. His Sultanic Majesty also conferred on Mrs. Goelet the Grand Cordon of the Turkish Order of the Chefakat, which was not much, after all, for a woman who had done what the powers have never been able to do with all their armaments.”
NYT - 24 June 1903 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet is coming over on the Nahma and will be at Newport this Summer.”
NYT - 26 June 1903 - “The presence at the Kiel regatta of Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt on the North Star, Mrs. Robert Goelet and party on the Nahma, and James Henry Smith and party on the Margarita has aroused considerable interest. ”
NYT - 28 June 1903 - “KIEL, June 27 - His Majesty [The German Emperor] later called upon Mrs. Goelet on the yacht Nahma and upon Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt aboard the North Star.”
THE TIMES (London) - 29 June 1903 - “BERLIN, June 28.- After being present at the launch of the new cruiser Roon at Kiel yesterday, the German Emperor.... in the afternoon.... visited Mrs. Vanderbilt’s yacht, the North Star, and Mrs. Goelet’s yacht Nahma.”
An American squadron was paying a visit to Kiel at this time and the reception was laboured with the New York Times commenting that “The naval love-feast at Kiel has an air of unreality,” though “The Emperor and the Prince Henry have both been hospitable to the distinguished Americans present in private yachts.”
NYT - 11 July 1903 - “AMERICAN YACHT IN COPENHAGEN REGATTA. Copenhagen, July 10.- Great preparations are being made for the Royal Yacht Club regatta, commencing July 12. Sixty-four yachts are entered, representing Great Britain, Germany, Scandinavia, and America. The last named will be represented by Robert W. Goelet’s Swan. Mr. Goelet will arrive on the steam yacht Nahma to-morrow. Cornelius Vanderbilt, on the steam yacht North Star, and Allison V. Armour, with his steam yacht Utowana, will attend the elaborate festivities which will be held nightly during the racing week.”
NYT - 24 July 1903 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet is in Norway and her yacht, the Nahma, will cruise in Northern waters all this Summer.”
NYT - 26 July 1903 - “The cruising season abroad has about ended. Mrs. Robert Goelet is slowly making her way back to Havre with the Nahma, stopping at various places en route.”
NYT - 3 August 1903 - “SPITHEAD, England, Aug. 2.- The American steam yacht Nahma, owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet, has passed here westbound.”
NYT - 5 August 1903 - COWES WEEK - Arrivals.... “The most prominent are the Drexels, mother and son, on their amazing steam yacht Margarita, which, after Mr. Gordon-Bennett’s Lynstrata, is the finest private yacht in the world. Besides her, flying the Stars and Stripes, are Mrs. Goelet’s Nahma, a vessel which has gained some notoriety among yachtsmen and Americans from the fact that its owner flew the German standard from the mainmast when the Emperor lunched on board it a few weeks ago at Travemünde. It is difficult to convey to non-yachting people how epoch-making the act was, but it may be set on record that if a yachtsman wishes to do special honour to a guest on his boat he flies the guest’s flag at the mizen. The main flag proclaims the nation and club of the person whose castle the yacht is understood to be.”
NYT - 16 August 1903 - OSTEND - Wednesday - “King Leopold was assisted in receiving his guests by Princess Clémentine. The King’s marked courtesy to Mrs. Goelet on this occasion has been made the subject of much comment, and has revived the report that his Majesty has promised to visit Mr. and Mrs. Goelet next Summer, on the occasion of the St. Louis Exhibition. The King and Princess Clémentine were the guests last week of Mr. and Mrs. Goelet on their yacht Nahma.”
NYT - 23 August 1903 - “PARIS, Aug. 22.- From all parts of France bitter complaints are being made of the weather, which is so bad as to drive Americans away to Carlsbad and other Continental resorts.... Mrs. Robert Goelet and a party of guests are on the steam yacht Nahma, anchored off Dinard.”
NYT - 26 January 1904 - CANNES, Jan. 25.- “The American steam yacht Nahma, has arrived here, having on board the Duke and Duchess of Roxburghe.” The Duke had recently married May Goelet, daughter of Ogden Goelet.
NYT - 6 March 1904 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet arrived in Cannes on Wednesday, and has joined her yacht the Nahma, which has been lying at the Quai Saint Pierre for the past five weeks.”
NYT - 16 April 1904 - “KAISER VISITS AMERICANS. Lunches with Mr. and Mrs. C. Vanderbilt and Calls on Mrs. R. Goelet. Syracuse, Sicily, April 15.- Emperor William, wearing the uniform of an Admiral, and accompanied by eight members of his suite, lunched with Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt on their steam yacht North Star to-day.... Visits were also exchanged between the Emperor and Mrs. Robert Goelet, who arrived here to-day on her yacht Nahma. The Emperor said he was glad to meet friends when far from home.”
NYT - 18 April 1904 - “SYRACUSE, Sicily, April 17.- Emperor William, accompanied by fifteen members of his suite, dined to-day with Mrs. Robert Goelet on board the latter’s steam yacht Nahma.
The Emperor expressed himself as delighted with the event and said he wished the Empress were with him to share the pleasure.”
NYT - 31 May 1904 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet will take a party to the Kiel regatta before visiting America. The Nahma is at Southampton, being put in order for the trip.”
NYT - 23 June 1904 - “KIEL, PRUSSIA, June 22.- The regatta opened to-day. The weather was cheerless and a steady, cold rain fell. The German war vessels of the home fleet were moored in the harbor and there was a large number of American and English yachts, including Cornelius Vanderbilt’s North Star, Allison V. Armour’s Utowana, Frederick W. Vanderbilt’s Warrior, and Mrs. Robert Goelet’s Nahma.”
NYT - 24 July 1904 - “Mrs. Vanderbilt and Miss. Vanderbilt are at present the guests of Mrs. Robert Goelet on the Nahma....”
NYT - 5 June 1905 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht has left Venice for Southampton.”
NYT - 22 June 1905 - “PRINCE RACES AT KIEL - KIEL, June 21.- The annual regattas of the Imperial yacht Club were inaugurated to-day in the presence of Emperor William.... The Americans were interested spectators. Besides those yachts that arrived yesterday the morning brought the steam yacht Nahma. It followed the imperial yacht Hohenzollern through the canal, leaving Cuxhaven immediately after the Emperor’s departure. As guests of Mrs. Goelet were Ambassador Charlemagne Tower and Mrs. Tower. The Utowana followed the Nahma, with Allison V. Armour aboard....
NYT - 5 July 1905 - “COPENHAGEN, July 4.- Many buildings were decorated with American flags to-day. The yachts in the harbor were elaborately dressed, especially the Nahma, owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet, which will leave to-morrow for a cruise in the Atlantic Ocean.”
NYT - 18 March 1906 - “Eugene Higgins has a party on the Varuna, and on Thursday they were at Marseilles. From there they go to Gibraltar. David Bishop’s yacht is also in Southern seas and the Nahma is at Cannes, where this week Mrs. Goelet, Mrs. Vanderbilt, and Miss. Vanderbilt will start out on a Spring cruise.”
NYT - 13 April 1906 - “ASH FALLS IN NAPLES GREATER THAN EVER - But Vesuvius Is Becoming Calmer and Panic Is Decreasing - Naples, 12 April.- .... The wind is blowing from the volcano towards Naples, carrying the ashes in this direction. This evening the fall of ashes and cinders here became worse than at any time since the eruption.... Every day that passes gives new evidence of the magnitude of the catastrophe. To-day’s visit of King Victor Emmanuel to Ottajano revealed new tragedies. At one point his Majesty was obliged to abandon his motor car and go forward on horseback amid constant danger. His horse floundered through four feet of ashes and stumbles into holes, while horse and rider were blinded by the fall of large cinders and were threatened by falling basaltic masses.
In the presence of the King 129 more bodies were extricated from the ruins.... the dead at Ottajano are said to number 500.... Men were heard to exclaim to-day: “He comes, but the Pope stays at home. Long live the King!”.... It is estimated that about 5,000 houses in all have been destroyed or rendered uninhabitable.... It is noticeable that the birds have completely deserted the Vesuvius district. Thousands of them died from suffocation.... The American steam yacht Nahma, with Mrs. Robert Goelet and a party of friends on board, has arrived at Palermo. They witnessed the eruption of Mount Vesuvius from Amalfi, on the Bay of Salerno, not far from Naples, and give a vivid description of the scene.... “
1906
NYT - 10 May 1906 - “GOELET YACHT IN COLLISION - Mrs. Robert Goelet Aboard When it Rammed an Italian Warship - VENICE, May 9.- The yacht Nahma, with Mrs. Robert Goelet on board, in entering the harbor here to-day ran into an Italian warship. Both vessels were somewhat damaged.”
NYT - 13 May 1906 - “MRS. GOELET PAYS DAMAGES - Compromises After Collision of Her Yacht with Italian Warship - Venice, May 12.- After the collision in the harbor here last Wednesday between Mrs. Robert Goelet’s yacht Nahma and the Italian warship Affondatore, the Navy Department threatened to bring suit against Mrs. Goelet. A compromise has been reached by Mrs. Goelet paying the damages.”
NYT - 4 August 1906 - “The Nahma is waiting at Cannes for Mrs. Robert Goelet, who is to sail for Europe very shortly.”
NYT - 2 December 1906 - “SOCIETY AT HOME AND ABROAD - Mrs. Ogden Goelet has arrived in town from Hot Springs, where she has been for several weeks. Mrs. Goelet will sail shortly for Europe. Her son and daughter-in-law, and Mrs. Robert Goelet, the widow of the elder Robert Goelet, will remain abroad. The Nahma is in commission, and she will cruise during the Winter.”
NYT - 31 March 1907 - “MRS. GOELET IN CEYLON - Frank Riggs and Dr. Allen Her Guests on the Nahma - COLOMBO, Ceylon, March 7.- The Cairo season has extended during the last two Winters to Ceylon. After doing the Nile and the Pyramids numbers of wealthy Americans take the big Australian steamers from Port Said or Suez for a trip to this isle of spices and return to Europe in the Spring. Mrs. Robert Goelet is here on her magnificent steam yacht Nahma, which flies the New York Yacht Club ensign at the stern. Mrs. Goelet has two guests on the yacht. Mr. Frank Riggs of Washington and Dr. Allen.... The time passage from Port Said to Colombo is eleven days, and fine warm weather may be counted upon at this season of the year. Kandy and Nuwana Elija are delightful places in the hills easily accessible from Colombo by rail, and the tropical scenery on the island is considered to be the best in the world.”
NYT - 9 June 1907 - “SOCIETY - Home and Abroad - Mr. and Mrs. Robert Goelet have sailed for England. They are to join Mr. and Mrs. Biddle abroad. Mrs. Ogden Goelet is also on the other side. The Goelet’s will come back in time for the late Newport season.”
NYT - 20 June 1907 - “EMPEROR AT REGATTA - .... KIEL, June 19.- The regatta of the Imperial Yacht Club began here to-day with stormy weather.... Emperor William, on board the Imperial yacht Hohenzollern, steamed up Kiel Bay, saluted by nearly the whole of the German navy, moored in lines two miles in length on either side of the channel....Among the dozen steam yachts in the harbor are the Nahma, owned by Mrs. Robert Goelet....” etc.
NYT - 23 June 1907 - “Mrs. Ogden Goelet, who arrived at Havre on the yacht Nahma at the beginning of the week with the Countess Miele-Winckler and her daughters, has gone to Kiel for the regatta. Her present plan, I understand, is to return to Newport for a few weeks and then come back to Europe in August.”
Also - “The Nahma, with Mrs. Robert Goelet as hostess, has arrived at Kiel. It is to be there for the races. It will be remembered that some years ago, on the occasion of the visit of Prince Henry of Prussia to this city, one of the first visits he paid was to Mrs. Goelet, who had just then sustained a severe bereavement in the death of her only daughter. Mrs. Goelet is always entertained by the imperial family on her visits to Germany.”
NYT - 24 June 1907 - “KIEL, June 23.- KAISER.... Dines with Mrs. Goelet - Emperor William dined with Mrs. Robert Goelet on board the Nahma this evening. Mr. and Mrs. Carnegie were among the guests.”
NYT - 26 June 1907 - “KAISER MAY SEEK AMERICAN ALLIANCE - Berlin, June 25.- There is widespread comment on the significance of Emperor William’s conspicuous attentions to the American Ambassador, Charlemagne Tower, during the present regatta week at Kiel.
Whom the Kaiser selects to sit next to him at the dinner table is always an item of importance in German Court etiquette. At Friday’s gala dinner aboard the imperial yacht Hohenzollern his Majesty sat between Ambassador Tower and the Prince of Monaco. At Mrs. Goelet’s luncheon on the Nahma on Saturday, the Kaiser’s neighbours were the hostess and Mr. Tower.... The Nauticus, the famous German Navy annual, which has just appeared, in discussing the possibility of a war with England, emphasizes how eminently proper it is that Germany shall cultivate good relations with the United States....”
s.y. Nahma at Havre 1907
NYT - 8 December 1907 - “AMERICANS ON THE RIVIERA - ....There are three big American yachts in Riviera waters just now. James Gordon Bennett’s Lysistrata, Eugene Higgins’s Varuna, and Arthur Hinckley’s Calanthe. With the expected arrival of Anthony Drexel’s Margarita and Mrs. Goelet’s Nahma, America as usual, will have the finest pleasure fleet in the Mediterranean.”
NYT - 12 January 1908 - “SOCIETY - Home and Abroad - Mrs. Robert Goelet has ordered the Nahma to proceed to Havre, and she will return to Europe quite shortly.”
NYT - 23 February 1908 - “Mr. and Mrs. W. Starr Miller have gone abroad, and they will be entertained by Mrs. Goelet on the Nahma, now at Cannes, ready for a Mediterranean cruise.”
THE ESSEX COUNTY STANDARD – Saturday 23 May 1908 - “EAST DONYLAND – FOOTBALL IN VENICE – A win for s.y. Nahma’s football team was witnessed at Venice on May 11, in the presence of about 1,000 spectators. The local team, which is the premier one of that city, were the first to break away, but were met by a stubborn defence by the uniting backs. After a bit of up and down play Mason notched the first point for the yachtsmen amidst great excitement, and at the interval Nahma led by one goal to nil. In the second half the locals pressed hotly, but failed to score. Just on time Mason scored a second goal, thus bringing to a close a very successful season. Matches played 10, won 6, lost 3, drawn 1. Nahma’s team; Bragg, Cranfield (captain), Hutchinson, Worley, Cameron, Shead, Muir, Mason, Woods, Christie, and Pitt.”
NYT - 7 June 1908 - “SOCIETY - Home and Abroad - Newport, R.I.- “Robert Goelet will have his mother’s cottage on the cliffs, and expects to be joined by his mother, Mrs. Robert Goelet, who is cruising about European waters in her steam yacht Nahma, some time in August.”
NYT - 10 January 1909 - “SOCIETY - Home and Abroad - Mrs. Goelet, who is abroad, will sail in the Nahma from Cannes the latter part of this month. She will cruise in southern seas during the Winter and early Spring.”
s.y. NAHMA
Postmark 1906
THE ESSEX COUNTY STANDARD – Saturday 13 February 1909 - “EAST DONYLAND – FOOTBALL ABROAD – Three football matches have been played by the team of the s.y. Nahma, which is now stationed at Cannes, and have created a great interest amongst the residents of those parts. Six of the members were old players of the Rowhedge United Football Club. The matches and results were as follows:- January 16, s.y. Nahma versus Lady Evelyn. Nahma four goals to nil; January 23, s.y. Nahma versus s.y. Maund, Nahma four goals to nil; January 30, s.y. Nahma versus s.y. Maund, Nahma seven goals to nil. The names of the Nahma players were:- Goal, Philip Knights; full backs, Harold Cranfield (captain), Tom Ennew; half-backs, T. Woods, T. Mason, R. Christie; forwards, Lemon Cranfield, A. Wisdom, Charles Pitt, Ted Hillyard, W. McPhee.”
Harold Cranfield was an A.B. and later Quartermaster on the Nahma. After serving on the s.y. Sapphire he captained the s.y. Heliopolis.
NYT - 14 February 1909 - “DREXEL YACHT AT CANNES - The Margarita Arrives and Joins Mrs. Goelet’s Nahma. Special Cable to THE NEW YORK TIMES - CANNES, Feb. 13.- The port is assuming a very animated appearance. Anthony Drexel’s steam yacht Margarita has just arrived and moored next to Mrs. Robert Goelet’s Nahma, with the owner on board with a party of friends. Mr. and Mrs. A.J. Drexel are expected at about the usual time.”
THE ESSEX COUNTY STANDARD – Saturday 13 March 1909 - “EAST DONYLAND – THE VARUNA – The steam yacht Varuna has returned to her anchorage in the Colne after a cruise of eight months to America and the Mediterranean. Her football team have played 11 matches, won 6, drawn 4, lost 1. Goals scored for 26, against 13. The last match was played at Cannes on February 20, against the team of the yacht Nahma, ending in a draw of two all.”
NYT - 4 April 1909 - “NAPLES, April 3.- Never before have the people of Naples shown such as interest in the arrival of a foreigner as in the expected visit of ex-President Roosevelt..... There are many American yachts anchored in the harbor, among them Anthony J. Drexel’s Margarita, and Mrs. Robert Goelet’s Nahma. It is probable, however, that the spectators on the yachts will see little, as the police precautions are very elaborate.”
NYT - 5 September 1909 - “NEWPORT - Mrs. Robert Goelet has closed her season, and, with her son, Mr. Robert Walton Goelet, sailed for Europe to join her yacht, Nahma, in European waters.”
NYT - 26 June 1910 - “FEWER AMERICANS AT KIEL THIS YEAR - Mrs. Goelet’s Yacht the Only Pleasure Vessel There Flying the Stars and Stripes - .... BERLIN, June 25.- All roads lead to Kiel this week end. The annual regatta of the Imperial Yacht Squadron, Germany’s premier Summer social event, is in full swing.... The American element this year is rather less conspicuous than usual, the only yacht in the harbor flying the Stars and Stripes being Mrs. Robert Goelet’s Nahma, with a party of New Yorkers on board.”
NYT - 3 July 1910 - “Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma has left Kiel for a Summer cruise in European waters. The Nahma was the only private yacht visited by the Kaiser in the course of the Kiel regatta. His Majesty took tea on board.”
NYT - 10 July 1910 - “KAISER ON GOELET YACHT - Inspects the Nahma and Is Mrs. Goelet’s Guest at Dinner - Special Cable to THE NEW YORK TIMES - BERLIN, July 9. - The Kaiser inspected Mrs. Robert Goelet’s yacht Nahma at Odde in the Norwegian fjords this afternoon. He remained on board for dinner this evening.”
1909
NYT - 11 September 1910 - “SOCIETY - Home and Abroad - Mrs. Robert Goelet, Sr., left Newport a few weeks ago and will spend Autumn and Winter cruising on her yacht, the Nahma.”
NYT - 5 February 1911 - “AMERICANS ON THE RIVIERA - .... Other American arrivals at Cannes are Mrs. Robert Goelet, with her yacht, the Nahma....”
THE TIMES [LONDON] - Wednesday 5 April 1911 - “RIVIERA NOTES - Mrs. Robert Goelet’s yacht Nahma, which has been lying in the Port of Cannes throughout the present season, left for Monaco on Saturday, and will go on to Corsica, Palermo, and Corfu, where she will probably be during the visit of the German Emperor. His Majesty has already been entertained on board the Nahma.”
NYT - 18 June 1911 - “AMERICAN YACHTS AT KIEL - Corsair, Nahma, and Utowana to Attend the Yachting Week - BERLIN, June 17.- According to the German press America’s most palatial private yachts are to anchor in Kiel Harbor during regatta week, beginning next Tuesday. They include J. Pierpoint Morgan’s Corsair, Mrs. Ogden Goelet’s Nahma, and Allison V. Armour’s Utowana. The owners of all three craft have been at Kiel before, and Mr. Armour and Mrs. Goelet rank among the Kaiser’s old friends.
His Majesty, in accordance with his custom, will visit the yachts and either lunch or take tea on board them. He considers the Nahma and Utowana models of completeness and luxury.”
NYT - 20 October 1911 - “WANDERING SAILORS RETURN - Two Succeed in Reaching Here After Trips Around the World - Returning home after adventures afloat and a hard-luck story each, John Dillon, and James Bassele of New Orleans arrived yesterday in the American liner St. Paul.... Savannah was the starting point for Bassele. He went before the mast on the American bark Osperga to Buenos Aires and from there to Marseilles. There he became a member of the crew of the American yacht Nahma cruising in the Mediterranean. He was taken with pneumonia and spent four months in a hospital in Cannes. He was then sent home from Southampton by the American Consul.”
NYT - 1 July 1912 - Following the Kiel yachting week the Kaiser declared J.P. Morgan to be his lucky mascot, gave his yacht the most prestigious berth next to the Hohenzollern, and invested him with the Order of the Red Eagle, second class. The Crown Princess, however “instead of journeying back from Dantzig from Kiel with her husband, preferred to go there aboard Mrs. Robert Goelet’s yacht, the Nahma, arriving there to-day.”
THE TIMES - [LONDON] - Friday 23 August 1912 - “COURT NEWS - Mrs. Goelet is lying seriously ill in her steam yacht Nahma in Southampton Water.”
Cornelius Vanderbilt's North Star
Photo of Mrs. Goelet and the Kaiser on board Hohenzollern in Norway taken 1910
NYT - 24 August 1912 - “MRS. GOELET GOING TO PARIS - Will Undergo Treatment there for Her Serious Ailment - SOUTHAMPTON, Aug. 23 - Mrs. Robert Goelet, who is said to be suffering from cancer, left during the night on her yacht, the Nahma, for Havre, and, it is said, is to be taken to Paris for treatment.
Mrs. Goelet has not been able to go on deck for two months, and a doctor has been constantly in attendance.
Her agents have received instructions not to give any information as to the destination of the yacht, and it was thus hoped to avoid a continuation of the many inquiries that came from New York yesterday.”
Also - “PARIS, Aug. 23 - Robert Goelet, who sailed from New York on Aug. 11 on the steamship Campania, immediately after receiving information by cable of his mother’s illness, arrived in Paris this evening. Mrs. Goelet remained on board the Nahma at Havre.”
THE TIMES - [LONDON] - Tuesday 27 August 1912 - “The German Emperor has decorated Captain George Harvey, who commands Mrs. Robert Goelet’s steam yacht Nahma, with the First Class Order of Merit, and the German Crown Princess has presented him with a set of sleeve links, bearing her initials in sapphires, in commemoration of their visit to the yacht at Kiel recently.”
NYT - 5 December 1912 - “MRS. ROBERT GOELET DIES IN PARIS HOME - Prominent American Hostess’s Death Follows an Operation for Cancer - BODY TO BE BROUGHT HERE - Entertained German Emperor on Her Yacht Nahma - History of Great Goelet Real Estate Fortune - PARIS, Dec.4. - Mrs. Robert Goelet died at 4 o’clock this morning at her Paris residence 46 Avenue d’Iena. The cause of death is stated to have been a complication of diseases.
She was taken seriously ill in August this year while at Southampton on her yacht Nahma, and her ailment was diagnosed as cancer. She immediately left for France to undergo treatment. She was able to walk on deck, during the voyage to Havre, and later on, in Paris, an operation was performed. It was reported her health had improved.
Her son, Robert Walton Goelet, was with her at her death. The body will be taken to the United States.
Mrs. Goelet, on her yacht Nahma, visited Kiel during yachting week, at the end of June, nearly every season since 1900. The German Emperor and the Empress on many occasions had luncheon or dinner on board the Nahma. Mrs. Goelet also entertained the Emperor at Eastern Mediterranean ports twice on his trips to and from Corfu, and she always was a welcome guest at the Imperial Palace in Berlin.... Mrs. Robert Goelet was one of the distinguished hostesses of our time. Her social prestige was recognized on both sides of the Atlantic, whether she was presiding over her home at 591 Fifth Avenue, or cruising in Europe, entertaining on her yacht, the Nahma, such guests as the Emperor of Germany and the late King Edward. Her marriage to the late Robert Goelet made her a part of one of the oldest and richest families in New York....
NYT - 21 December 1912 - “MRS. GOELET’S FUNERAL ON MONDAY - Funeral services for Mrs. Harriette Warren Goelet, widow of Robert Goelet, will be held at St. Thomas’s Church at 10 o’clock on Monday morning.... The body was taken to Havre on Dec. 14, and is being brought here on the liner Provence. The interment will be private.”
OTTAWA FREE TRADER - “LOG OF DEATH SHIP - Nahma, a Pleasure Yacht, Brought Woe to Goelets - Last Affliction Caused Family to Deny Dying Wishes of One of its Prominent Members - Vessel Probably Will be Sold - New York.- The members of the enormously wealthy Goelet family of New York, one of the most prominent families of America, either die on board their yachts or are taken from them to die, says a writer. For this reason young Mrs. Robert Wilson Goelet, the former Miss. Elsie Whelen, will not let her husband own a yacht of any kind, will not let him go cruising, not will she go herself. And more than this, she is bringing up her small boys to hate yachts and will not even let them have toy boats of any kind.
“Yachts are evil to the Goelets,” she has said many times. Last summer, when the news of Mrs. Robert Goelet’s serious illness reached her, young Mrs. Bobby said to her great friend, Mrs. Gordon Douglas;
“The Nahma will claim another victim.”
Early in December Mrs. Goelet died, not on board the Nahma, as she desired, however, but in Paris, where her only son, Robert Walton Goelet, insisted on taking her. Mrs. Goelet’s illness and death is the latest tragedy of the magnificent pleasure craft that cost the late Robert Goelet more than $1,000,000.
So strongly do the whole family feel on the yachting subject in general, so keen is their dread of the Nahma in particular, that they refused to comply with Mrs. Goelet’s last wishes and have her body brought back to America on board.
But the Nahma was not the first yacht to bring tragedy to the family. Fifteen years ago Ogden Goelet, one of the best known New York and Newport millionaires, died on board his steam yacht Mayflower. He had been cruising in English waters and died at Cowes. His body was brought home on board the vessel that he loved as he did his life. His widow and son, Robert Wilson Goelet, would not keep the Mayflower. Mrs. Goelet said that it would always be a funeral ship to her, and so she sold it to the United States government. It was used as a concerted gunboat during the Spanish war, and is now the President’s yacht.
It is a noticeable fact that Mrs. Ogden Goelet and her son have never been interested in yachts or yachting since Ogden Goelet’s death.
Twenty months after putting the Nahma in commission Robert Goelet died on board in the Bay of Naples, and his body was brought home to New York, in the beautiful little library whose walls were lined with rare first editions and equally rare old prints.
Robert Goelet left the Nahma to his wife, with the request that she hold it until her death. From that day until her death a few weeks ago the widow lived almost entirely on board the vessel on which her husband died.
In January, 1902, after a series of brilliant entertainments on the Nahma, Mrs. Goelet decided to return to New York and bring out her daughter Beatrice.
Beatrice was then seventeen years old, and one who seemed destined to make a great match, for in Europe she was on friendly terms with the younger members of the royal families of Great Britain and Germany. While speeding across the Atlantic with the future so rosy before her Beatrice was stricken with measles. On reaching New York she was hurried to the mansion so wonderfully prepared for her, but she died on the tenth of February, the second victim of the Nahma.
Even after this tragedy, from which she never recovered, Mrs. Goelet would not sell the yacht.
Last winter Mrs. Goelet returned to New York and was frequently at the opera in her box, but otherwise she did not entertain very formally. She went to Europe last spring and after the Nahma had been redecorated took a cruise to the northward. Her son did not go with her. In July Mrs. Goelet developed a dangerous illness. Specialists hurried to the yacht from London and Paris, said that it was cancer and that there was no hope.
“Let me die on board my boat,” said Mrs. Goelet.
Her son hastened to Europe, but refused to grant his mother’s request.
She went to Paris, where she had an apartment, and after several months of suffering died there on December 5.”
NYT - 1 August 1914 - “MRS. H.W. GOELET LEFT $3,000,000 - Appraisal of Her Property Shows Only $376,254 in Property Taxable Here - EVERYTHING GOES TO SON - Large Holdings in Stocks and Bonds - Fine Collection of Tapestries, Art Objects, and Furniture - The appraisal of the estate left by Mrs. Harriette Warren Goelet, widow of Robert Goelet, was filed yesterday. The total value is about £3,000,000. Mrs. Goelet died at her Paris residence, 46 Avenue d’Iena, on Dec. 4, 1912, where she had journeyed on her yacht Nahma, to be treated for cancer.... Mrs. Goelet was a resident of Newport [Rhode Island], and so the bulk of her estate, consisting of securities, is not taxable in this State [New York]. She received from her husband the life use of the house at 591 Fifth Avenue and an annuity of $200,000.” .... and on it goes....
Photos of Nahma clipped from an unnamed French magazine
