Whitewing Trophy “Recovered from the depths of the lake”? Yes, the Whitewing Trophy sat at the bottom of Geneva Lake, possibly for decades, until 1974 when divers found it and brought it to the attention of members of the Lake Geneva Yacht Club. There are no clues about how it got there. The club restored the trophy, engraved its history on its base, and in 1982 dedicated it for overall second place in the Class C championship series. We do know that the trophy was donated by the Lake Geneva Branch of the Grand Army of the Republic (G. A. R.) for a race on September 3, 1883, “open to all yachtsmen on Geneva Lake.” The winner was the sandbagger Whitewing, owned by Samuel Waters Allerton (1829 – 1914), a prominent Chicagoan who had worked on a farm until he was 18, became successful in raising livestock, was president of Allerton Packing Company and instrumental in establishing Chicago’s Union Stock Yard, was a director of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, was the author of “Practical Farming,” was a director of the First National Bank and the Chicago City Railway Company, and was described in a book about Chicago’s leading citizens as a man who “has built his fortune on the sure and honorable foundation of industry, economy, sound judgement, and resolute action.” In 1891, his son, Robert (1873 – 1964), a benefactor, honorary president, and trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago, was the first winner (also in Whitewing) of LGYC’s Folly Prize,  which had been donated by his sister, Kate Allerton Papin, and named for the family home. (The Folly Prize has been a Class E trophy since 1927.) Laurie Morrissy was the first winner of the Whitewing Trophy in modern times; Frank Davenport is the 2013 winner. Is your name on the Whitewing Trophy? Click here to find out.