Established in 1909, Cambridge Boat Club (CBC) is a rowing and social club with approximately 800 members. Considered one of the premier rowing clubs in the United States, CBC’s membership includes numerous current and former Olympic and National Team athletes, along with a host of competitive and recreational rowers of all ages: 80+ year-old veterans launch off our dock alongside 15-year-old novices. An active social program helps retain rowers even after they hang up their oars and attracts non-rowers to join.

The club is a founder of the world's largest annual head race, the Head of the Charles Regatta, which leases its headquarters office at CBC. The club also hosts the City of Cambridge’s public high school, Cambridge Rindge & Latin High School (CRLS) crew, in a dedicated boat bay. 

The clubhouse sees active use, with over 5,000 boat launches each year. Adult sculling represents the majority of rowing activity, but a CBC Juniors (high-school) program and summer learn-to-scull sessions—along with the CRLS team—bring additional energy to the dock. More than 200 club meetings and member gatherings of various sizes take place at the club each year.

CBC has long been known as an attractive riverside venue for private parties, receptions, and meetings, and is available for large-event rentals by both members and outside hosts. Non-profit and charitable organizations use the club at discounted rates or at no charge. 

Building and site

CBC’s clubhouse was originally constructed in 1909 on the northern bank of the Charles near Hawthorne Street. In 1947, the structure was moved approximately half-a-mile upstream to its current location near Eliot Bridge to allow for the extension of Memorial Drive. In 1999, the club expanded to its current footprint to provide an ADA-accessible main entrance, restrooms and shower facilities, plus a library, office space, and a dedicated boat bay for the Cambridge Rindge and Latin high school. Currently, the clubhouse contains seven boat bays, locker rooms, a small weight training room, two general-purpose rooms used for social events and athletic training, a kitchen, a library, and office space. More than 160 rowing shells are stored on site.

CBC’s clubhouse sits on the traditional land of the Massachusett, the original inhabitants of what is now the City of Cambridge, on the banks of the originally-named Quinobequin—meaning “bending river or river that turns back on itself”—today, the Charles River. We pay respect to the people of the Massachusett Tribe, past and present, and honor the land and river which remain sacred to the Massachusett People.