for oar storage in the boat. Wooden oars are generally made of a light, strong wood, such as fir or ash. The blades can either be flat for general use or spooned for faster propulsion. In modern racing boats, oars are created from a composite of materials such as carbon fiber which makes them lightweight. Whitehall rowing boats The origins of this distinctive and practical craft are unclear. In earlier times, however, builders were often sailors or seafaring men. Successful designs for large and small craft alike evolved slowly and as certain desirable qualities were attained and perfected they rarely changed. Some hold that the Whitehall rowing boat design was introduced from England. However the famed nautical historian Howard I. Chapelle, cites the opinion of the late W. P. Stephens that in New York City there is a Whitehall Street and this was where the Whitehall was first built. Chapelle, Stephens and others agree that the design came into existence some time in the 1820s in New York City, having first been built by navy yard apprentices who had derived their model to some extent from the old naval gig. See also Coastal and ocean rowing College rowing Ocean rowing Racing shell Rowing exercise Single scull Rowing (sport) Sculling References External links Watercraft Human-powered transport