History of the San Jaime

The Llaud San Jaime, known as Llaud den Campanix, was built in 1926 at the shipyard in Ibiza, where boats from Formentera now dock, at the Maritime Station. She was built by Ribera carpenter Pep Respaiz, and was considered a jewel among this class of boats.

San Jaime entered into service in 1928, transporting passengers and cargo from Escalo to Ibiza. Her original owner was Jose Juan Torres, also known as Pep Campanix from Escalo. During this time, Formentera had no port— the only port was in Escalo, so the Campanix family built a ramp and winch system -still existing on the family property today- to pull the boat out on Formentera.

The captain in charge of the San Jaime was Vicente Campanix, brother of the owner. During his command, he was temporarily relieved at times with another captain named Juan den Pep Xumeu de la Molay. 

Eventually, owner Pep de Escalo had to stop sailing due to old age and poor health. He left command of the San Jaime to Jose Escandell Verdera, known as Pep Mestre, and later to his brother, Antonio.

When owner Pep Campanix died, he passed the San Jaime on to his son Vicente Juan Cardona, known as Vicente Campanix den Calo. Vicente eventually found the route between the two islands to be unprofitable, so in the early 1950s he decided to sell the San Jaime to the Escandell family from San Antonio de Ibiza.

The Escandell brothers, Daniel and Pep, formed a charter company and sailed the San Jaime in the San Antonio Bay, transporting tourists to the beaches. The family also used the her as a cargo boat between the mainland and Ibiza, to transport materials to start building the first of their family hotels. They installed the first maritime engine during this period— a Scania 18 horse power, one cylinder engine. Prior to this, the San Jaime had navigated solely by sail and wind.

In the early 1970s, Family Escandell sold the San Jaime to The Hotel Panorama to transport clients from Es Canar to Santa Eularia. The boat was then sold to Pedro Costas of San Antonio in the 1980s. The San Jaime was back in San Antonio!

It was moored half-submerged in the San Antonio Bay, when in the late 1990s, Jennifer Linley Taylor and her ex-husband bought the San Jaime from Pedro Costas. She was then lovingly restored— first by Vincente Corte in 2001, and again in 2021 by Francis Mari Cabrales. In 2013, Jen and her Fiancé, Wes Henderson, became sole owners of the San Jaime.

—This history was compiled with assistance from Captain Toni Ribas Bonet, documents from the Club of Retirees and Pensioners of the Sea of Ibiza and Formentera, and the grandson of Jose Juan Torres—San Jaime’s original owner.