The term "yacht" is a 17th-century English extraction from the Dutch word Jacht; however, royalty and aristocracy enjoyed traveling on the water from time immemorial, with the earliest documentation being in the Egyptian heyday.
The roots of modern yachting come from British royalty, commencing with Charles II when Kings and Princes commissioned relatively small pleasure craft in which they competed.
Conversely, larger craft were less concerned with maneuverability within harbors or along coastal regions, where the geography of the land made downwind sailing difficult.
Pirates also contributed to the technological advancements, as small, fast, and highly maneuverable vessels proved to be successful for their purposes.
The huge wealth accumulated by the commercial upper-class in the late 19th and early 20th century allowed commoners to enter the realm of yachting previously reserved for royalty and the peerage.
The late 1940s, following World War II, were a time of economic retrenchment, but as the US and international economies boomed in the 1950s the pent-up technology within the boating industry exploded with innovation and production.
World War II was the catalyst for development of compact engine systems, mass production of plywood watercraft, and advances in hydrodynamic design.
Each season brought more options and larger boats to the common man, almost analogous to the rapid expansion of the personal computer in the 1990s.
Many of the vessels produced during this time frame are afloat today, and several models still enjoy solid sales demand and exhibit excellent sailing characteristics.
The boats of the 1960s and 1970s were substantially extensions of classic hull designs which evolved in wood and were influenced by the early rules of racing.
What we consider long lean classic proportions of the boats of the early 1900s were at the time design exercises to manipulate the racing rules.
A large pure cruising boat would be likely to have solar panels, wind generated electricity, multiple heads (bathrooms), a complete galley (kitchen), comfortable cabins and even laundry facilities.
Many cruiser designs are cutter rigged meaning they carry two headsails, and many have a second mast (mizzen), in the yawl or ketch configuration.
These boats offer features such as center cockpit, deck salon, pilothouse, cutter rigs, mizzen masts etc.
The price may not be justified for bay cruising, but heavier shrouds, a thicker mast, and a stiffer hull could be priceless in a force 8 gale.