Dr. Molly McClain is Associate Professor and Chair, History Department, University of San Diego. A
ninth-generation San Diegan, she edits The Journal of San Diego History with Dr. Iris Engstrand.
ZLAC Rowing Club, 1892-
Molly McClain
In 1992, ZLAC Rowing Club celebrated its 100th anniversary with a gala at
the U.S. Grant Hotel and the publication of a history written by Helen Wetzell
Wallace. This year, the club will commemorate another special occasion—the 75th
anniversary of its clubhouse on Mission Bay. Designed by architect Lilian J. Rice,
the clubhouse provides a visual reminder that America’s oldest women’s rowing
club works to preserve its past and to encourage future interest in the sport.
ZLAC was founded in 1892 by Lena Polhamus Crouse, the daughter of Captain
Albert A. Polhamus, a pilot on the California coast and captain of the tug Santa
Fe. She persuaded her sisters, Caroline and Agnes, and their friend Zulette Lamb
to form a rowing club. Rowing was more than a popular sport; it was also a way
to get around San Diego Bay, albeit in a butcher boat. Inspired by their male
counterparts, the girls chose ranks—“Captain,” “First Officer,” etc.—and used
the first letters of their names to form the acronym ZLAC. In 1894, the San Diego
Rowing Club (SDRC) loaned them a six-oared barge that had been dug up from the
bottom of the bay. Shortly thereafter, ZLAC commissioned an eight-oared barge
from Fred Carter, the architect and designer of the famous Herreschoff yachts,
raising money from families and friends.
ZLAC’s first barge was launched on August 3, 1895, from the landing float adjacent to the Point Loma Ferry
landing. Courtesy of ZLAC Rowing Club, Ltd.