Shaw 24 Yawl Sailboats for Sale

Drawing Diagram

Builder drawing

Hull Type

Monohull · centerboard

Rig

Yawl

LOA

23.92' · 7.29 m

Disp.

4,800 lbs · 2,177 kg

First year

1957

In the late 1950s, the offshore racing community was dominated by large, heavydisplacement yachts designed to the Cruising Club of America (CCA) rating rule. It was during this era that a young William H. "Bill" Shaw, then a talented designer at the legendary firm of Sparkman & Stephens, cofounded the Midget Ocean Racing Club (MORC). Seeking to prove that a diminutive pocket cruiser could possess the seakeeping capabilities, speed, and safety of a true bluewater passagemaker, Shaw penned the Shaw 24 Yawl in 1957. He famously described the design as a halfsize prototype of Finisterre—Carleton Mitchell’s legendary Sparkman & Stephensdesigned centerboard yawl that dominated the Newport Bermuda Race. The resulting design did not just validate Shaw’s theories; it revolutionized the pocket cruiser market, establishing a standard of structural integrity and performance that would eventually inspire Olin Stephens and George O’Day to develop the highly successful fiberglass Dolphin 24.