~Magic~
Winner of the First America's Cup Defense ~1870
The story of yacht Magic is one of the most fascinating in early America's Cup history because the yacht that won the first defense of the Cup was not the famous yacht America at all. It was a smaller, rebuilt schooner named Magic.
The Challenge Arrives
Nineteen years after America shocked Britain by winning the 100 Guinea Cup around the Isle of Wight in 1851, an English yachtsman named James Lloyd Ashbury finally came to America to challenge for the trophy with his yacht Cambria. This was the first official defense of what had by then become known as the America's Cup.
Today we think of the America's Cup as a match race between one defender and one challenger. In 1870, however, the rules were very different. The New York Yacht Club allowed 17 American yachts to race against the single British challenger Cambria. Among the American fleet were famous yachts such as America, Dauntless, Phantom, and a relatively small centerboard schooner called Magic.
The Underdog
Magic had been built in 1857 and originally sailed under the name Madgie. Over the years she was modified several times and, shortly before the Cup race, underwent a major rebuild that made her longer, wider, and faster. Her owner, Franklin Osgood, believed she could compete with much larger yachts.
Many observers expected the larger and more famous boats to dominate. Few thought the smallest defender in the fleet would become the hero of the day.
Race Day – August 8, 1870
The race began off Staten Island and headed toward Sandy Hook before returning to the finish, a course of about 40 nautical miles. Eighteen yachts crossed the starting line together, creating a spectacular sight of white sails stretching across New York Harbor.
Almost immediately, Magic demonstrated her speed. Her centerboard design allowed her to point higher into the wind and maneuver more effectively than many of her rivals. She steadily pulled ahead while the British challenger struggled amid the crowded American fleet.
As the yachts rounded the marks and turned for home, Magic held her advantage. After more than three and a half hours of racing, she crossed the finish line first. The original yacht America—the boat that had started the legend in 1851—finished fourth. The British challenger Cambria finished only tenth.
Why the Race Was Controversial
The British were not pleased.
Ashbury argued that it was unfair for one challenger to race against an entire fleet of defenders. From his perspective, Cambria had effectively been forced to race seventeen American yachts at once. The dispute became one of the earliest controversies in America's Cup history and eventually helped shape the one-on-one defender-versus-challenger format used later.