Howard I. Chapelle (1901-1975) was an American naval architect, and curator of maritime history at the Smithsonian Institution. In addition, he authored many books and articles books on maritime history and marine architecture, including Yacht Designing and Planning, Boatbuilding: A Complete Handbook of Wooden Boat Construction, The History of American Sailing Ships,The History of the American Sailing Navy: The Ships and Their Development, American Small Sailing Craft, and many more.