History of CBC

The Cascadilla Boat Club was founded in 1977 by local professionals who wanted to make the sport of rowing available to all members of the community. These athletes, who were trying to find ways to bring the sport beyond the university and college level, were brought together by Neil Belcher.

Neil had rowed with a fledgling community rowing program in 1973, but the lack of space in the Cornell University boathouse forced the program to stop running. In the summer of 1977, as a high school senior, he brought a Board of Directors together to discuss establishing a program. The board incorporated as the Cascadilla Boat Club, LTD in October. The Founders were Tom Ambrose, Don Belcher, John Ferriss, Jim Freeman, Angie Grieg, Jan Rogowicz, Ward Romer, Bob Tallman, and Dave Tyler.

A permit to use the north bay of the old Cascadilla School Boathouse in Stewart Park was granted by the City of Ithaca, this enabled the club to begin. Built by the Cascadilla School in 1894-95, the boathouse was its primary athletic facility. The boathouse was acquired by the City of Ithaca in the 1930's and was used as a storage area until April of 1978, when City crews cleaned it up and CBC began its first programs. In 1986, the boathouse was put on the New York Register of Historic Places.

The boathouse has continued to serve CBC as the club has grown from 2 to over 30 rowing shells. The club was allowed to expand into the South bay in 1982. The boathouse stores eights, fours, quads, doubles, singles, some private sculls, and ergometers, .... all very tightly packed together.