Who was John Hunter? In 1986, Georgia Tech started a rowing team with used boats and oars purchased through the Student Foundation. The team grew and in 1988, John Hunter became involved in the team. John Hunter was an ardent Georgia Tech supporter and loved the rowing team. He agreed to sponsor the GT crew on St Andrew Catholic Church property and fund a boathouse. Mr. Hunter worked with Reverend E. Peter Ludden to gather support from the congregation to donate the land to start the rowing center we have today. In 1988, the Georgia Tech Rowing Club received permission to build its boathouse on the banks of the Chattahoochee River, behind St Andrew Catholic Church. If you stand at the boathouse and look back at the church, you’ll also see John Hunter’s name on part of the church building. One stipulation was that Georgia Tech would start a youth rowing club. The youth team was started in the fall of 1988 with great success. In 1990, the youth team and Georgia Tech separated with the youth team taking the name of the property—St Andrew Rowing Club—while keeping the black and yellow colors of Georgia Tech. In 1989, the clubs co-hosted the Atlanta Rowing Festival, now known as the John Hunter Regatta in honor of the vision and generosity of Mr. Hunter to build our incredible rowing teams in Roswell, Georgia. |
