Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26)
Description
The Dawson 26 (also known as the Midship 26 or later developed into the Parker Dawson 26) is a rugged, trailerable coastal cruiser designed by Robert Finch and originally built by Midship Yacht Company starting in 1973, with production continuing under Dawson Yacht Corp. and others until around 1982. It's celebrated for its unique center-cockpit layout, seaworthiness, and capability for extended voyages despite its compact size—famously, one crossed the Atlantic in 1975 as a "warm-up" for the OSTAR race. With only about 300 hulls produced across variants, it's a cult favorite among trailer sailors
Construction Details
| Designer | Parker Dawson |
|---|---|
| Builder | Midship Yacht Company |
| Length | 26.000 ft |
| LOA | 25.580 ft |
| LWL | 22.170 ft |
| Beam | 8.000 ft |
| Displacement | 3850 lb |
| Ballast | 1200 lb |
| Max Draft | 5.330 ft |
| Min Draft | 1.670 ft |
| Year Built | 1973 |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 29.25 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 10 ft |
| p | 24 ft |
| e | 7.25 ft |
| p2 | 16 ft |
| e2 | 5 ft |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29.25 ft | 10 ft | 24 ft | 7.25 ft | 16 ft | 5 ft | - | - |
Blueprints
Sails
Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26) - MAINSAIL
| Luff | * 24 ft - (7315 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 7.25 ft - (2210 mm) |
| Leech | * 24.67 ft - (7519 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 88 ° |
| Diagonal | * 24.83 ft - (7568 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 3.5 in - (89 mm) |
| Area | * 89.97 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator | |
Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26) - JIBSAIL
| Luff | 26 ft - (7925 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | 12 ft - (3658 mm) |
| Leech | 22.25 ft - (6782 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 102.4 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 10.24 ft - (3121 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 12.51 ° |
| Area | * 133.18 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator | |
Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26) - GENOA
| Luff | 28.5 ft - (8687 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | 16 ft - (4877 mm) |
| Leech | 26.67 ft - (8129 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 147.2 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 14.72 ft - (4487 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 4.17 ° |
| Area | * 209.81 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator | |
Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26) - ASYMMETRICAL
| Luff | * 29.37 ft - (8952 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 16.5 ft - (5029 mm) |
| Leech | * 27.02 ft - (8236 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 165 % |
| Area | * 363 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator | |
Dawson 26 Ketch (Midship 26) - MIZZEN
| Luff | * 16 ft - (4877 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 5 ft - (1524 mm) |
| Leech-AftHdBd | * 16.36 ft - (4987 mm) |
| Tack Ang | * 88.05 ° |
| Diag (clew/head) | * 16.6 ft - (5060 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 3.5 in - (89 mm) |
| Area (no Roach) | * 41.35 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator | |
Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.