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George Thrall, Joe McGuinness, Sage Adams, and Herbert Newton formed
the Guilford Yacht Club in July, 1954. They acquired the parcel of
land on the West River from B.W. Bishop and Sons in October, 1957.
In 1959 club members built the first dock, which ran along the river
and accommodated approximately 50 boats. A small clubhouse with
picnic tables was built on the property, providing a gathering place
for members.
During the 1960’s the Guilford Yacht Club attempted dredging, to
form a basin along the River. In 1976 an extensive dredging
operation was conducted, resulting in three docks that could
accommodate up to 80 boats. GYC volunteers built the docks up the
River and then floated them down to the new basin.
In the mid 1980s Philip Wallach, with Guilmar, Inc., organized an
effort to purchase the property and form a state-of-the-art marina
that consisted of individual dockominium units and adjacent
property. On September 26, 1986, under the direction of Commodore
Jim Scott, the property was sold to the developer with the express
condition that the Guilford Yacht Club would continue as an entity
committed to its mission of yachting and camaraderie.
Guilmar, Inc. undertook a massive construction program, which
included removal of the rock outcropping that blocked the entrance
of the West River, and dredged a deep channel out into the sound.
Large docks built on durable floatation, supported by steel pilings,
were constructed; and dockominium units were sold to fund the
development. In the early 1990’s an economic recession forced the
developer into bankruptcy, with the FDIC taking possession of the
unsold slips and the adjacent property.
In 1993 the FDIC offered these properties for public auction. The
Unit Owner’s Association was formed by the existing dockominium
owners; and the Association purchased the remaining slips and
adjacent property, thus returning it to those who worked hard to
realize the vision for the Guilford Yacht Club that came some forty
years earlier.
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