The First Ericson 35 Sailboats--the "Albergs" or the "Classics"
The original Ericson 35 plays a part in the interesting story of the origins of the Ericson Yacht Company. I will use photos of my boat--hull #5--and photos of other E35s as they become available to build this "History" for the boat. Old advertisements and articles regarding the Ericson Yacht Co. and the original Ericson 35 were kindly sent to me and will be published here as evidence of the "peculiar birth" of these "good old boats"! Roger Brown was an engineer with Ericson from 1983 to 1990. He answered a letter I sent to Latitude 38 Sail magazine. I was looking for verification of the story about the original 35s being produced using a discarded Alberg 35 hull mold from the Pearson Company. Roger sent me his account of the story as well as copies of Ericson advertisements from various Sailing magazines of the late 1960's. I will have those items on the following pages. There is also an article from a California newspaper dated in 1969 which tells the story of the beginnings and early successes of Ericson........... Until a story of another "Alberg" Ericson was published in the September/October 1998 issue of Good Old Boat magazine, I had only Roger Brown's information regarding these boats. With the permission of Karen Larson, the Editor and Publisher of Good Old Boat, I have included some text and photos from that article.
The "Alberg" moniker is a natural, but then I saw a letter to the editor of Good Old Boat from a couple in California who have owned one from its first day in the 1960's----and they refer to it as the "Classic". I like both nicknames.
LEFT: A very close up view of the "counter" stern, which slopes aft from bottom to top. This look became "obsolete" in the early 1970s when the Racing Boat rules were changed to favor a boat that had its length over all (LOA) nearly the same as its waterline length (LWL). The new look became the one to be copied in cruising/racing boats. So this old "counter" look became the "classic" look by defaullt. A recent article in GOOD OLD BOAT magazine of July/August 2002 mentions that "a couple of dozen" boats were built. The author of the article, Ed Lawrence, had interviewed Bruce King, the well known designer..
ABOVE: Modified E35. This is hull #5. Any and all credit for her uniqueness goes to Mike Barber, her former owner. All these boats came from the factory the same way. But Mike added the beautiful wood hatch that provides wonderful light in to the saloon area. The latches aft are also on its front so it can be tilted up from fore or aft for fresh air. He prepared the boat for coastal cruising with radar, GPS, VHF. The creature comfort additions include a large 12 volt refrigerator, and solar panels to help out the refrigeration while at anchor.....television with a VCR and of course an fm/am stereo system. A watermaker is also squeezed in under the lav. sink. The large chrome Dorades just forward of the custom skylight hatch were added and provide extra ventilation. Two more are behind the stern locker and one more is visible on the bow. A 30HP Perkins M30 Diesel provides auxiliary power. Finally, All the original "windows" have been replaced with opening Lewmar portlights.
During my 12 years of ownership I removed the solar panels and TV equipment. And I always had a slip so I used the boat as a big daysailer in San Diego area. It was not really fulfilling its mission as a coastal cruiser. As of December 2010, she is off to the races with new owners that are doing just that.
BELOW: This is Ericson "Alberg" hull #19 that was featured in the Good Old Boat magazine and is owned by Dan and Kathy Haupert. I chose these 2 photos to show off the beautiful lines of the original E35. The graceful overhangs of bow and stern in the Carl Alberg designed hull link these boats to the past by "reminding" us just a bit of those wonderful old wooden boats of earlier times.
The following pages have copies of letters and newspaper articles that help illuminate the "birth" of these pretty boats back in the mid 1960's. Interesting old Ericson 35 advertisements from the various sailing magazines of the 60's will also help build the "history" of the original E35.
Anyone with info on a particular boat from this series please email me. I would like to find photos and/or stories regarding these original 35s.
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The GOOD OLD BOAT magazine article about this boat is on a fine website for the PEARSON ALBERG 35 owners. Go to www.alberg35.org Look in the lower left corner of the website page under the title: Adventures, Reviews, Yarns and War Stories. The article's title is "When is an Ericson really an Alberg?"
Many sailboat websites can be found at the GOOD OLD BOAT website, which is of course, www.goodoldboat.com. Open up "Resources for Sailors"------then to Owners' Associations.
The "single teardrop window" in the main cabin (above photo) is the "original design" by Ericson. The factory changed this single window look to the "split window" look in response to a lawsuit by Columbia Yachts. See the "split window" version on my page 4--a great looking Ericson down in Tampa.
An ERICSON ALBERG 35 circled the globe in 1987. Read Teddy Seymour's very interesting stories at his website. http://indigowaves.com/seymour/
This website began in 1998 shortly after I bought one of these boats in San Diego.. I sold my boat in December 2010. I appreciate the ladies and gentlemen that sent me their pictures and information during these last twelve years. The point of the website was to gather the history of these particular boats and provide photos that illustrate the various modifications over the brief period of production.
The website http://www.ericsonyachts.org/ has many Forums for ALL of the different Ericsons.
My explanation regarding the Quote Marks around Alberg and Classic: Nowhere in Ericson's ADS are these "monikers" used to describe the original E35. But because of Carl Alberg's design fame, his name usually comes up in a "selling/buying" conversation. So I have attached these appellations to better describe this model of E35's.
In fact, I think it can be said that Bruce King ( who designed the deck and deck house) has become as famous for boat design as had Mr. Alberg. So any owner can justifiably "gloat" about the boat's pedigree.
