Jonathan Hand Churchill, 78, died peacefully at his Manhattan home on March 26, from complications of Lewy body disease.

Born in New York city, he was the son of Mary Hand Darrell and John Dwight Winston Churchill, and a grandson of Judge Learned Hand and of the American author Winston Churchill.

After graduating from Harvard College and Harvard Law School and serving in the U.S. Army, he practiced law in the city.

He was a member of the Century Association, the American Law Institute, the New York City Bar Association and the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club. He is fondly remembered on Martha’s Vineyard and elsewhere as an avid sailor who took great pleasure cruising and racing his 1926 Q boat Taygeta and the 1979 trimaran Moxie. He navigated Moxie’s record-breaking win (64 hours, 48 minutes) in the 1987 Newport Bermuda Multihull Race.

He is survived by his wife, Judith Gaebel Churchill, as well as three stepbrothers, Norris Darrell Jr., Richard W. Darrell and Cass Canfield Jr.

A memorial will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Central Park Conservancy (centralparknyc.org) or Sail Martha’s Vineyard (sailmv.com).