Ratsey's sail making company on City Island in 1914Ratsey's sail making company on City Island in 1914
Ratsey & Lapthorn is a British sail making company based in Cowes on the Isle of Wight, England and they had a loft in the United States. The loft was on Schofield Street on City Island, in the Bronx.[1] It is one of the oldest and largest sail maker in the United States.[2]
History
The company was established in 1796. The United States branch was established in 1902.[3] In 1958 Franklin Ratsey was chairman of the board.[4]
The introduction of synthetic fabrics to sailmaking saw Ratsey and Lapthorn suffer commercial decline.[5] By 2017, when the company was bought by Jim Hartley, annual turnover was just £79,000.[5] Former fund manager Simon Brazier invested in the business, later becoming chairman, with Hartley running the operation day-to-day.[5]
Ratsey and Lapthorn provided new sails for the restoration of Tally Ho.[5]
^"Ratsey Taken to Task. Sailmaker Criticised for Accepting Order to Equip Columbia". New York Times. April 30, 1903. Retrieved 2010-11-29. The sensation caused in British yachting circles by the announcement that Ratsey Lapthorn, the English sailmakers, who have an establishment at City Island, N.Y., have been given orders for suits of sails for the Reliance, the Constitution, and the Columbia, can be best judged by an editorial article which appears in The Yachting World of April 30 under the heading, 'An International Contest.'
^New York City Guide. Federal Writers Project. ISBN1-60354-055-5. Plant of Ratsey and Lapthorn, Inc., on Schofield Street near City Island Avenue, is the American unit of Ratsey and Lapthorn, Ltd. (1796), world-famous sailmakers. (Visitors admitted.) Established in this country since 1902, ...
