WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

What happened to all of the wonderful things that were once associated with the Stotesburys?
The Yacht Nedeva

The name Nedeva was the combination of the name "Ned," a nickname for E.T. Stotesbury, and "Eva," the name used by Stotesbury's second wife Lucretia Bishop Roberts Cromwell. There were a total of six yachts named Nedeva. The only one that still exists today is the fifth Nedeva, launched in November of 1930 for Stotesbury by the New York Yacht, Launch and Engine Company under registration number 230345.

The yacht was christened by Miss Margaret Connell, Stotesbury's private nurse-companion. Mr. and Mrs. Stotesbury were both present at the christening, and they gave a tea on board the yacht immediately afterwards. Other guests present were Mrs. Christopher Dumphy and Mrs. Grace H. Hutchins (who were in charge of the interior decoration of the yacht), Jimmy Cromwell (Eva's son from her first marriage), and J.F. Masterson, a vice president of the shipbuilding company.

The Fifth Yacht Nedeva in Palm Beach, Florida

Photo source: Springfield Township Historical Society

E.T. Stotesbury originally had not intended to purchase a new yacht until the Spring of 1931, but he decided to move up his request in order to help employment among shipbuilders during the Depression of 1930. The seventy-seven-foot wooden yacht was powered by two six-cylinder gasoline motors manufactured by the 20th Century Manufacturing Company and had twin screw propellers that gave it a maximum speed of fifteen knots. The yacht boasted a large sun deck, four staterooms and two baths with accommodations for six persons. The china service believed to have been used on board the fifth yacht Nedeva was a special set of French Haviland china. It was commissioned from A. Stahel & Sons in San Diego, California and it incorporated the initials "ETS" into an orange and black geometric border design.

Nedeva plate

 

Haviland Mark

 

Nedeva Demi-tasse

 

Stotesbury monogram

The Special Issue of Haviland China Made in France for the fifth yacht Nedeva
A silver ladle from the Nedeva

A silver-plated ladle made for one of the Nedevas by Reed & Barton. Note the burgees of the Corinthian Yacht Club and of E.T. Stotesbury on the handle.

The May, 1931 issue of Country Life Magazine featured an article on the yacht Nedeva. Accompanied by photographs of the yacht exterior and interior, the article revealed the following:

THE NEDEVA

A comfortable cruiser

The Nedeva was designed and built for Mr. Stotesbury by the New York Yacht, Launch & Engine Company; Grace Hyman Hutchings and Rebecca Thomson Dunphy were the decorators.
Edward T. Stotesbury, Esq., the eminent banker of Philadelphia, cruised in southern waters last winter in his new cabin cruiser Nedeva. The name is a combination of the first names of its owners. Mr. Stotesbury flies the burgee of the Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia on his yacht.
E.T. Stotesbury on the Nedeva at age 82
Mr. Stotesbury's stateroom
Henna, cream and blue striped silk curtains contrast pleasantly with the ivory colored walls in Mr. Stotesbury's stateroom. The bedspread is henna, and blue damask covers stool and armchair.
The deck furniture on the Nedeva was created exclusively for Mr. Stotesbury; many of the materials used were imported and some were specially designed. The coarse, rough-textured linens used on the deck repeat, in stronger tones, the colors of the yacht's interior. The perfect harmony throughout and the luxury of equipment individuate the Nedeva; it is as comfortable as a well-ordered house.
The aft deck of the Nedeva
Saloon
In the saloon, a room with much charm, the walls are of mahogany, harmonizing with the curtains of ecru silk striped in warm rust color with soft green and gold accents. The chairs and little accessories repeat these notes of green, rust and gold.
The eggshell walls in Mrs. Stotesbury's stateroom are glazed with a warm peach glow. Imported modernistic plain silk curtains combine the blue-green of the sea with ivory and tones of peach. Bench and chair take their color from the blue-green of the curtains; the lamps, of alabaster and crystal, have peach colored shades.
Mrs. Stotesbury's stateroom
The fifth Nedeva had several subsequent names and owners; she was named the Wild Duck, the Nirvana IV and the Northwind prior to 1947. In that year, she became the Shorleave, based in Seattle, Washington. She served as a private yacht doing low-key charters in Alaska for many years, and during the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound in 1989, she was used as a floating hotel for the executives from the clean-up crews.
The 1930 Nedeva now in Seattle
 Former Nedeva, Now Shorleave
Nedeva Cabin Exterior
Nedeva Pilot House
 Main Cabin
Interior of main cabin
The Shorleave
 Classic Profile
Pilot House over Dining Salon
Port Side

The Shorleave (formerly the Nedeva) recently in Seattle, Washington.

Photo Sources: Dock Street Yachts, Inc. and Mahina Yachts, Inc.
Starboard Side Deck

Update!!

The yacht Nedeva was sold in late 2009 and the new owner in Germany has done a magnificent job of restoring the vessel!

 

yacht Nedeva in Victoria, B.C. 2009

The Nedeva/Shorleave on arrival in Victoria, B.C. in 2009, awaiting transport to her new owner in Germany.
(Left to right: Captain John Morrison, First Mate Ryan Downs, Engineer Mike Roth)
Photo courtesy of Mike Roth

The New Nedeva

The yacht Nedeva is now offered for charter in Bremen, Germany by Papp Classic Motoryacht Charter (see link below)
Nedeva in Bremen 14 Nedeva in Bremen 12
Nedeva in Bremen 10 Nedeva in Bremen 8
   
Photos courtesy of FvP

The Yacht Nedeva Links

The website for the restored yacht Nedeva

A recent German television news broadcast of the restored yacht Nedeva cruising on a beautiful day

 

The yacht Nedeva was used to transport the Stotesburys between their houses in Bar Harbor, Maine; Philadelphia and Palm Beach, Florida. The intracoastal waterway was often used as a route. In 1934, Stotesbury decided to sell the Nedeva and purchase a larger (100') diesel yacht launched in 1929 by the same manufacturer. This next yacht became the sixth and final Nedeva.

E.T.Stotesbury and Yachting Friends

A "Best-Dressed" E.T. Stotesbury and friends aboard the sixth yacht Nedeva, 1937. Stotesbury's nurse-companion Miss Connell is on the far right.

Photo source: Private Collection.
Nedeva 6 Burgees The Sixth Yacht Nedeva Nedeva 6 Burgees
A special set of Lenox china was commissioned from Wm. H. Plummer & Co. in New York for the sixth Nedeva, sporting the flags of the Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia (where Stotesbury was a member) and the Stotesbury yacht colors with the initials "E.T.S." on them.

The Special Issue of Lenox China Made for the sixth yacht Nedeva

Photo Source: Edward C. Zwicker

Nedeva Bar Harbor 1934

The sixth yacht Nedeva in Bar Harbor, Maine in 1934. Photo source: Private Collection.

Nedeva Palm Beach 1937

The sixth yacht Nedeva in Palm Beach, Florida in 1937. Photo source: Private Collection.

E.T. Stotesbury on the Nedeva 1934 Stotesbury on Nedeva deck 1934

E.T. Stotesbury on the deck of the sixth yacht Nedeva in Palm Beach, 1934
The Nedeva Palm Beach 1934
 
If you are aware of the current whereabouts of other similar items that were once associated with the Stotesburys, please feel free to add to our guest book.
All original material, digital images and HTML coding Copyright (c) 2014 by Wayne C Willcox. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. All HTML coding and digital images are the copyrighted property of Wayne C Willcox. No portion of this Web site may be copied without the express written permission from Wayne C Willcox. Wayne C Willcox intends to protect its copyrights. However, this and other pages on this website may be linked from any other Web pages, so long as the contents and/or appearance are not altered in any way.