{"nrhp_refnum":"12000288","name":"ELVIRA (sloop)","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Newey Ln.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Brookhaven","county":"Suffolk County","state":"NY","lat":40.77299268200005,"lon":-72.89793397299997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2012-05-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture","Engineering"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Elvira is a 38-foot gaff-rigged \"P\" class racing sloop built in 1906 by Patchogue boat builder Gilbert Monroe Smith. She is moored in Neweys Canal at Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, and historically sailed on Great South Bay.","why_significant":"Elvira is argued to be a rare surviving example of a Great South Bay \"P\" class racing sloop, the largest racing boats on the bay, and likely the last one that can still be sailed. She represents the work of builder Gilbert M. Smith and was one of the earliest regional racing sloops to receive an experimental fiberglass and epoxy skin in 1957.","narrative":"Elvira is a 38-foot gaff-rigged racing sloop launched on June 9, 1906, in Patchogue, Long Island. Gilbert Monroe Smith, a self-taught builder who produced roughly 400 vessels, designed and built her for Harry Walton to race on the shallow waters of Great South Bay. She belonged to the \"P\" class, the largest racing boats on the bay, and is believed to be the last one still able to sail. Robert Starke owned her from 1937 and in 1957 sheathed her hull and deck in fiberglass cloth and epoxy resin, an experimental treatment then considered high technology that helped preserve the original planking. Starke donated her in 1999, and the Carmans River Maritime Center now maintains her. Restoration has included new frames, a rebuilt deck and a reconstructed mast, and the work replaces only the parts needed to keep her sailing. Her design remains unchanged. She was listed for her place in the racing history of Great South Bay and as an example of Smith's work.","period_of_significance":"1906-1961","architect_builder":"Gilbert Monroe Smith/ designer & builder","architectural_style":"OTHER: \"P\" class racing sloop","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Under restoration by the Carmans River Maritime Center, with the aim of keeping her as an active sailing sloop on Great South Bay.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:48.354342-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/12000288.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75322098","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/suffolk-county/elvira-sloop-12000288/"}