# Gustaf Estlander > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Gustaf_Estlander > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Gustaf_Estlander.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustaf_Estlander > Source revision: 1329089855 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Finnish architect, yacht designer and speed skater}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox sailor | name = Gustaf Estlander | image = G E 1923.jpeg | image_size = | caption = | birth_name = | fullname = Gustaf Axel Estlander | nickname = | nationality = | birth_date = 18 September 1876 | birth_place = | death_date = {{death date and age|1930|12|1|1876|9|18|df=yes}} | death_place = | height = | weight = | classes = [8 Metre](/source/8_Metre) | club = | collegeteam = | coach = | medaltemplates = | show-medals = yes | updated = }} '''Gustaf Axel Estlander''' (18 September 1876 – 1 December 1930) was a Finnish architect and one of the most successful Scandinavian [yacht](/source/yacht) designers of the early 20th century. He was born and educated in Finland, later set up a yacht yard in Germany, and spent his final years in Sweden. As a sporty youth, Estlander in 1894 sailed from Finland to Sweden in a canoe. He was an accomplished skater, winning the 1898 [European Speed Skating Championships for Men](/source/European_Speed_Skating_Championships_for_Men) in Helsinki, Finland. He also competed at the [1912 Summer Olympics](/source/1912_Summer_Olympics).{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/61949 |title=Gustaf Estlander |publisher=Olympedia |access-date=30 May 2021}} ==Biography== [[File:Singoalla 1922.jpg|thumb|150 m{{sup|2}} skerry cruiser ''Singoalla'', designed by Gustaf Estlander, on [Kanholmsfjärden](/source/Kanholmsfj%C3%A4rden) in 1922.]] In 1898, Gustaf Estlander graduated as an architect from the [Helsinki Polytechnic Institute](/source/Helsinki_Polytechnic_Institute) (currently [Aalto University](/source/Aalto_University)). He founded the architectural firm of Estlander & Settergren, which in 1903–1915 designed a score of large apartment buildings in the booming capital city of Helsinki. These imposing buildings were created in the national romantic style. Some of them have lately been declared national heritage sites.{{When|date=December 2021}} When Estlander turned full-time yacht designer in 1914, he had already drawn 60 sailboats. He gained a reputation for light, radical boats, such as the double-hulled ''Flamingo'' of 1899. He made his international breakthrough in 1917 at the helm of his [22 m{{sup|2}} skerry cruiser](/source/22m%C2%B2_Skerry_cruiser) ''Colibri'', trouncing all competitors at the Sandhamn Regatta in Sweden. He quickly gained a large number of design commissions from clients in northern Europe. In the post-war years of 1921–23, he was chief designer and owner of the Pabst yard near Berlin, Germany. His [22 m{{sup|2}}](/source/22m%C2%B2_Skerry_cruiser) and [30 m{{sup|2}}](/source/30m%C2%B2_Skerry_cruiser) skerry cruisers were successful on the inland lakes of northern Germany. His own enormous [150 m{{sup|2}} skerry cruiser](/source/150m%C2%B2_Skerry_cruiser) ''Singoalla'' reached 14.1 knots on a race from Kiel to Travemünde on the Baltic Sea, according to [Uffa Fox](/source/Uffa_Fox), the well-known author on yacht design. Moving on to Sweden, Estlander obtained Swedish citizenship to be eligible for designing a Swedish entry for the [6 Metre](/source/6_Metre) [Scandinavian Gold Cup](/source/Scandinavian_Gold_Cup). His creation ''May Be'' won the Gold Cup in the US in 1927 for Swedish shipping tycoon [Sven Salén](/source/Sven_Sal%C3%A9n). His Gold Cup winners include the later Swedish entries ''Ingegerd'' and ''Ian''. In the 1920s, Gustaf Estlander reached international fame as a yacht designer, obtaining six-metre commissions from as far away as Cuba and Singapore. In total, more than 1000 yachts were built according to his drawings. Of these, 21 were six-metre yachts and eight were eight-metre yachts. His [8mR](/source/8mR) design ''Cheerio'' represented Finland at the 1936 [Summer Olympic Games](/source/Summer_Olympic_Games) in Kiel, Germany. Estlander had himself participated in the 1912 Olympic regatta in Nynäshamn, Sweden, gaining a 4th place skippering his Fife-designed 8mR yacht ''Örn''. Gustaf Estlander died at the height of his career, at only 54 years of age. A young employee at his design studio, [Knud Reimers](/source/Knud_Reimers) took over and continued Estlander's business, at 24 years of age. == See also == * [Villa Hjelt](/source/Villa_Hjelt) == References == {{reflist}} ==Sources== * Barck, Pekka & Street, Tim (2007). ''The Six Metre – 100 Years of Racing'', pp D22-23. Helsinki: Oy Litorale Ab. {{ISBN|978-952-5045-31-4}}. * van Bueren, John Lammerts (2000). ''The Great Eights'', pp. 107–116. Milan: Fabio Ratti Editoria S.r.l. {{ISBN|88-87737-05-3}}. * Ekberg, Henrik (2003). ''[Uppslagsverket Finland](/source/Uppslagsverket_Finland)'', vol. 1, page 359. Espoo: [Schildts Förlag Ab](/source/Schildts). {{ISBN|951-50-1356-9}}. * Ericsson, Henry (2003). ''Finlandssvenska Tekniker'', vol. 4, pp. 89–106. Helsinki: Tekniska Föreningen i Finland. {{ISBN|952-91-6603-6}}. * Fox, Uffa (1936): ''Sail and Power'', pp. 237–238. London: Peter Davies Ltd. {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Estlander, Gustaf Axel}} Category:Finnish yacht designers Category:1876 births Category:1930 deaths Category:Sailors at the 1912 Summer Olympics – 8 Metre Category:Swedish-speaking Finns Category:Finnish male speed skaters Category:Architects from Helsinki Category:Art Nouveau architects Category:Olympic sailors for Finland Category:Finnish male sailors (sport) Category:8 Metre class sailors Category:20th-century Finnish architects Category:Finnish emigrants to Sweden Category:Finnish expatriates in Germany --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Gustaf Estlander](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustaf_Estlander) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustaf_Estlander?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.