The Mosquito was built by the Thames Iron Works Shipbuilding Company. She was designed by that great original genius, Tom Waterman,who had already produced many successful merchant steamers and sailing ships: notably the steamer Himalaya, built originally for the Peninsular and Oriental Company, but afterwards sold to the Government as a troopship.
Mosquito, besides presenting novelties in form, in the way of an easy and hollow bow, large displacement,
well-raked post and deep heel, also upset all preconceived notions of what was yacht fashion, by being built of iron. Great was the discussion over this departure; but, among many prophets of evil, a writer in 'Hunt's Magazine,' in 1854, discussing wood
versus iron, predicted that 'the"Mosquito" is likely to be well and hearty when the present wooden craft have gone to that "bourne from which no traveller returns."'
This prediction was exactly fulfilled, as Mosquito, after as long and brilliant a career as has fallen to any yacht, then went to work as a pilot boat off Barrow-in-Furness.