John Cox Stevens
John Cox Stevens ( September 24, 1785 *, † June 13, 1857 ) was an American businessman and sailor. He is best known as the founder and first Commodore of the New York Yacht Club ( NYYC ) and mitsegelnder owner of the yacht America, which hands down off the Isle of Wight British yachts beat in a race around the island in 1851. The yacht America won the One Hundred Sovereigns Cup and became the eponym of the oldest and still sailing regatta since the America 's Cup.
John Cox Stevens was the eldest son of the influential family Stevens. His father, the engineer John Stevens, was in the Revolutionary War veteran, pioneer of steam navigation and buyers of the lands that form the origin of today's Hoboken in New Jersey. His mother Rachel Cox came from New Brunswick. His brother Robert L. Stevens worked as a businessman and as the father as an engineer and designer. His brother Edwin Augustus Stevens founded by will, the Stevens Institute of Technology, the fourth- oldest technical university in America, and was in the 1860s also Commodore of the NYCC.
John Cox Stevens graduated from Columbia University, which he left in 1803. On December 27, 1809, he married Mary C. Livingston. Stevens was the owner and president of the ferry company that operated the first steamboat ferry between Hoboken and New York City. From enthusiasm for steamboats he operated a shipyard in Hoboken. As the sportiest member of the family, he developed a great passion for the sport of sailing and built a series of yachts. On board his yacht Gimcrack, he was appointed in 1844 to the Commodore of New York Yacht Club, which he had previously founded together with eight other men. With the team of his schooner - yacht America in 1851 he won the One Hundred Sovereigns Cup. Upon returning to New York John Stevens donated the acquired One Hundred Sovereigns Cup to the New York Yacht Club and founded this prize the America 's Cup, which was held for the first time in 1870 ahead of New York between the yachts Magic ( USA) and Gambria ( UK ) ( winner: Magic ). 1994 Stevens was inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame.
Stevens was also a member of the oldest New York Gentlemen's Clubs The Union Club. As president of the Jockey Club Union Course he taught in 1823 the famous North-South race from the English thoroughbred American Eclipse ( named after the famous racehorse Eclipse) won from the north against Lady Lightfoot from the south. The race stoked tensions between the North and South, for the victory sparked in the north, a great enthusiasm for the sport horse and disgraced the South in his claim to be superior in the breeding and training of racehorses. Furthermore, Stevens Cricket introduced in the United States.