 It is often used as the text for private boating schools throughout the U.S.; officially recommended book for the U.S. Coast Guard's boating education classes and many local United States Power Squadrons.The work originated in 1917.The original author, Charles Frederic Chapman (1881–1976), was an avid boater, and the editor of Hearst's "Motor Boating Magazine" from 1912 to 1968.