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We provide a complete boat care, repair and restoration service; from basic preventative maintenance up to full scale, show quality restoration, and always with the highest quality of workmanship and dedication to precision.The fittings have been handmade in brass, then chromed for resilience. It is tailored with Riva intakes and fine Italian leather bench seating for five people. Our work is carried out using a mix of modern and traditional methods and materials with a view to breathing new life into your boat, whilst retaining the integrity of the original build. The Super Slipper Launch was on show at the London International Boat Show. Probably the most modern luxurious slipper launch ever built! A unique hand built boat by Fine Wooden Boats of Cambridge with no expense spared. Its beautiful planked hull in Iroko with copper fastenings and deck laid in Teak and Mahogany.

Attention to detail is what sets this craft apart. Only the best seasoned timber was selected for this unique inland waters launch with fittings created to suit. 24-ct gold leaf on the port and starboard interior cover boards was supplied by Wrights of Lymm who supplied gold leaf for Her Majesty the Queen’s Jubilee barge.

Outboards are steerable external drive motors containing the engine block, linkage gears, and propeller within a single unit, taking the place of a rudder. Outboard drives are mounted to the transom and steered by a remote system leading to a wheel mounted on the boat’s console.Shortly, similar upscale varnished-wood runabouts by Gar Wood and Chris-Craft and were also available, fitted with windshields to protect the cockpits and up to 400 hp (300 kW) Liberty V-12 marinized surplus World War I aero engines built for speed. By 1960, wooden powerboats had become rare since most new vessels used fiberglass or other lightweight materials, including fiber reinforced plastic materials to reduce weight and maximize speed, particularly in racing craft. The art of boatbuilding in wood has been largely lost since it requires a level of craftsmanship impossible in large scale production boat building. One exception is the Hacker Boat Company, which continues to produce mahogany boats on the shores of Lake George, New York. Other wooden boatbuilders include Graf, J-Craft, and Boesch. In order to gain speed, the hull shape had to be designed to take advantage of hydroplaning; a hydrofoil-like design would allow the boat to skim atop the water’s surface at high speed instead of needing to push aside large quantities of water to move forward. Another design change which followed soon after was the replacement of the tiller and rudder control with a rudder controlled by a steering wheel, allowing the operator a comfortable forward-facing position. A remote lever to allow the engines to be placed into a reverse gear was another early innovation.Among the leading builders of 1920s runabouts was John L. Hacker, who founded the Hacker Boat Company in 1908. Hacker was a pioneering naval architect who developed many design innovations, like the ‘V-bottom’. His designs became the model upon which virtually all subsequent runabouts were based.

The first runabouts date back to the 1920s and were originally small, fast, powerful, varnished, wooden boats created to take advantage of the power of outboard motors such as the first Evinrude, introduced in 1909.The mahogany runabouts built by Italian builder Carlo Riva in the late 1950s and the 1960s are considered by many to be premier European examples of the type. The most famous Riva of all time was the Carlo Riva design called the Aquarama Special.

But by the late 1940s, Gar Wood had stopped producing boats, and by the 1960s Chris-Craft was moving to the more modern materials of plastic and fiberglass. Hackercraft, with multiple changes in ownership, continued on.Inboards have the engine block permanently mounted within the hull of the boat, with a drive shaft and a propeller to drive the craft underneath the hull, and a separate rudder to steer the craft.

A runabout is any small motorboat holding between four and eight people, well suited to moving about on the water. Characteristically between 20′ and 35′ in length, runabouts are used for pleasure activities like boating, fishing, and water skiing, as a ship’s tender for larger vessels, or in racing. Some common runabout types are bow rider, center console, cuddy boat and walkaround. The world’s largest runabout, Pardon Me, is 48 feet long and owned by the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, New York.

A pirogue (/pɪˈroʊɡ/ or /ˈpiːroʊɡ/), also called a piragua or piraga, is any of various small boats, particularly dugouts and native canoes. The word is French and is derived from Spanish piragua [piˈɾaɣwa], which comes from the Carib piraua.

In his 1952 classic song “Jambalaya”, Hank Williams refers to the pirogue in the line “me gotta go pole the pirogue down the bayou”. Johnny Horton, an avid Louisiana fisherman who celebrated Cajun customs and culture, also mentions pirogues in his 1956 song “I Got a Hole in My Pirogue”. Hank Williams, Jr. (son of the aforementioned Hank Williams) had a hit song in 1969 “Cajun Baby”, which refers to the pirogue in the line “ride around in my old pirogue”.There are accounts of 17th and 18th century Caribbean pirates using pirogues to attack and take by force much larger vessels including sloops and even barca-longas. Pirogues were used extensively by pirates and buccaneers throughout the Caribbean, the now-Mexican and Gulf Coasts and the East Coast of what is now the United States. For the most part, though, such vessels were used for scouting or as tenders. Pirogues in the United States are associated particularly with the Cajuns of the Louisiana marsh. The early Creole pirogues were cypress dugouts but today they are usually flat-bottomed boats. Pirogues are not usually intended for overnight travel but are light and small enough to be easily taken onto land. The design also allows the pirogue to move through the very shallow water of marshes and be easily turned over to drain any water that may get into the boat. A pirogue has “hard chines” which means that instead of a smooth curve from the gunwales to the keel, there is often a flat bottom which meets the plane of the side. Pirogues were used by Lewis and Clark on the Missouri River and westward from 1804–1806, in addition to bateaux, larger flat-bottomed boats that could only be used in large rivers. Their pirogues were medium-sized boats of the company carrying eight rowers and a pilot, capable of carrying eight tons of cargo. Henry D. Thoreau writes of using heavy pirogues in his book The Maine Woods.Doug Kershaw’s 1961 hit “Louisiana Man” includes the line “he jumps in his pirogue headed down the bayou”. Many online lyrics sites misunderstand this line, saying ‘hero’ or sometimes ‘biro’ instead. Pirogues are usually propelled by paddles that have one blade (as opposed to a kayak paddle, which has two). It can also be punted with a push pole in shallow water. Small sails are built by local fishermen and they can also be employed. There are two types of sails with differences in their shapes, the square one is used mainly for fishing near the coast and is only useful for Tailwind, while the triangular-shaped ones are used to transfer goods from one place to another by maintaining a bowline direction. Outboard motors are increasingly being used in many regions. The term ‘pirogue’ does not refer to a specific kind of boat, but is a generic term for small native boats in regions once colonized by France and Spain, particularly dugouts made from a log. In French West Africa, the term refers to handcrafted banana-shaped boats used by traditional fishermen. In Madagascar, it also includes the more elaborate Austronesian lakana outrigger canoe.

Classic wooden boat plans is a collection of established wooden boat designs ranging from the early 1900’s to about 1970. Some of our own designs are Banshee, Custom Barrelback 19 and the Deep V inspired by the Donzi Sweet 16, Bantam. Other plans include Chris Craft, Hacker, Gar Wood, Riva, Switzer, barrel back, Baby Bootlegger, Flyer, Teaser, Rosita Hacker.Pietro Riva began building boats in 1842 at Sarnico, a small town in northern Italy on the shores of Lake Iseo. By the 1930s the business was managed by Pietro’s grandson, Serafino. But it was Serafino’s son, Carlo Riva, who transformed the company, making it the worldwide legend it is today. As a young man, Carlo Riva had very different ideas about boat design. Carlo began designing by modifying his father’s boats. At 19, Carlo designed his first twin engine boat, and before he was 30, he had designed and built more than 45 different models. Under Carlo’s leadership (which was hard fought), the company produced boats of the absolute highest quality and consistency. A succession of owners have owned the company since Carlo Riva sold it in the early 1970s, and today the firm is owned by the Ferretti Group and produces boats made of fiberglass. According to the Riva Society GB, no one is sure how many of the 4,000 or so wooden boats built by Riva survive today. They are rare and highly collectible.

At Hall’s Boat, we believe it is essential to match the right boat with the right owner. Our experts can work with you to find a boat that suits the way you will use it—from the water you’ll be on, to the number of passengers you’ll carry, to the activities you’ll do with and in it, to how you will board it, and more.

One of the most widely recognized names in wooden motorboats, Chris-Craft got its start in 1922 in Algonac, Michigan, with Chris Smith and his sons Jay and Bernard at the helm. Chris led several boat building ventures prior to that, including a partnership with Gar Wood building race boats. Chris-Craft focused on standardized boat production, enabling them to build boats year-round and at a good profit – while still being affordable to the average guy. Chris-Craft’s boat lines included the runabouts, utilities, cruisers, and sea skiffs. The founders sold the company in 1960, but Chris-Craft continued building wooden boats until 1972. The company is still around today, building boats made of fiberglass.From a full-service marina with all the standard services you’d expect—plus a few extras you might not expect, such as concierge service to prepare your boat for excursions, to charming Adirondack-style lodging accommodations, Hall’s Boating Club offers an unparalleled experience for our members. The company built only around 900 boats up until its demise, a few months before the stock market crash of 1929. Hull numbers can usually be found stamped on the engine compartment hatch, beneath the seats, and on the hull. Fay & Bowen built beautiful launches, both of open and long-deck, auto-boat configurations, and often with strongly radiused transoms as well as torpedo sterns. They also built a few round bottomed triple cockpit runabouts, a 40-foot cruiser, a 24-foot cruiser with sleeping quarters, and a stunningly beautiful 30-foot Raised Deck Runabout. This boat, designed by naval architect Morris Whitaker, had distinctive golden arrows running along the hull – gold leaf being a $200 option. Very few original Fay & Bowen engines are around today and even fewer remain in their original boats. Because of their beautiful lines and their impressive feel on the water, Fay & Bowen boats today are highly sought after. Garfield A. Wood “never intended to go into the boat building business. His goal was to personally set every speed record on water and be recognized as the world’s speedboat king. However, as he set forth to achieve these goals, he was influenced by colleagues and friends and as a result built the world’s finest line of production recreational sport boats,” according to the Gar Wood Society. Gar Wood produced boats from 1921 to 1947, not including the four years of World War II. It is estimated that over 10,000 Gar Wood boats were built during that period. In fact, for many years Hall’s Boat was a Gar Wood dealership. Today, Gar Wood Custom boats is a family company that builds wooden powerboats ” in the tradition of Garfield Arthur Wood himself.”Perhaps known best for its introduction of the electric launch at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, Elco produced a fine and varied array of boats in its heyday from the 1890s to 1949. According to the Elco website, “Elco designed and built – or had built – more than 6,000 pleasure boats ranging in size from an 18 foot gig or yacht tender to cruising power boats up to 127 feet in length. It also built craft for the government of the United States and other countries, including lifeboats for the U.S. Coast Guard, launches and tenders for various navies, anti-submarine motor launches in World War I, and PT boats in World War II – including PT 109 – captained by Lt. John F. Kennedy.” Today, Elco produces fine electric launches that echo the lines of the original boats, in addition to custom boats that reflect the old designs.The Shepherd Boat company was a small semi-custom builder of wooden boats, somewhat understated in styling but of high quality. The company was established in Ontario, Canada after World War II, initially selling boats only in Canada. In 1949, Shepherd introduced its first boat for sale in the US – a 17-foot twin cockpit forward model runabout. Its American distributor, Jafco Marine Basin of Buffalo, NY marketed the Shepherds heavily in the US, and the boats gained in popularity. By 1953, Shepherd was producing five models, including a convertible express cruiser, an 18-foot V-drive runabout, an 18-foot direct drive utility, and the Seamaster Twenty – a “roomier and stauncher 20-foot utility that can ship a he-man cargo of luggage, camp gear, or provisions . . . [with the] grace and agility of a runabout” as exclaimed by its advertisement in January 1954 Motor Boating magazine. In his book The Real Runabouts I, author Bob Speltz notes, “Shepherd did not switch from wood [to fiberglass] as most other inboard builders did and it seemed by 1960, the wooden inboard runabout market had all but dried up.” And with that, so did the Shepherd Boat company. Speltz goes on to say, “Today, Shepherd runabouts are gaining favor nationwide with collectors. It is hard to find a better constructed or nicer equipped speedboat than a Shepherd!” John Hacker was a design artist with a knack for what made a boat go fast. In fact, over the course of his life, John Hacker also designed boats built by other firms. Hacker bought his first boat works in 1909, and within the first three years had built nearly 30 hydroplanes, including some that could go over 50 mph. In 1913 Hacker joined with L.L. Trip and formed Hacker Boat Company, which later became the Albany Boat Co. After a short period Hacker sold the company and then started the Hacker Boat Company again, this time in Michigan. Throughout the 1920s, John Hacker and his company built luxury speedboats, including one in 1923, initially named “Miss Mary” and later renamed “El Lagarto.” “El Lagarto” made racing history when she was repowered with a 300-horsepower Packard engine by George Ries and won the 1933, 1934 and 1935 Gold Cup Race. Today, “El Lagarto” is on permanent display at the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, NY. The characteristic and highly innovative Hacker bottom had concave sections the entire length of the boat—a departure from other bottom designs of the day from Chris-Craft and Gar Wood. This bottom shape gives the Hackercrafts an inspiring, solid feel in the water, along with great speed. The construction of the original Hackers had many refinements, from using rivets to fasten the planking to the intermediate frames, as well has using forgiving red cedar for the longitudinal, outer planking below the waterline, rather than hard mahogany.Sought after by Chris Smith and Gar Wood, Roy Stanley chose to stay in Cape Vincent, NY, on the shores of the St. Lawrence River and work in his own shop. He had an uncanny ability to produce fast boats, and developed some unique construction methods. According to Bob Speltz in his book, The Real Runabouts IV, “Stanley built a lot of skiffs, large double ended, powered guideboats, and at least a few special inboard speedboats or runabouts. He even built a number of powerboats for bootleggers who were active all along the St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes.”

It’s called The Boat House and it is the place for serious wooden boat owners and collectors. Nested in the “picturesque” website of Hall’s Boat, The Boat House is a place to indulge in your love for wooden boats.The Lodging’s at Hall’s Boat offers travelers the perfect Lake George vacation package that includes four distinctive classic Adirondack-style lake houses.Hutchinsons were not built at a factory, but built at a yard by a crew of real boatbuilders who understood construction as well as how the boat would be used. The Hutchinson Boat Works in Alexandria Bay, NY (along the shores of the St. Lawrence River), dates back to 1908 where two brothers, Hubert and George Hutchinson,
ran a small operation building, for the most part, custom boats for individual customers. By 1929, the brothers had passed away but boat building operations carried on under new leadership. Hutchinson built boats designed for fishing, commuting, and cruising – customized to buyers’ specifications and built to handle the choppy water of the St. Lawrence River. Like many boatbuilding firms, Hutchinson did their part during both World Wars, building naval craft for the US government. The company still operates in the location they moved to in 1911; however, not as custom boat builders. Today, they are a full service marina and Sea Ray dealership. Only a limited number of wooden Hutchinsons were built in the company’s heyday, and because of their seaworthiness, beauty, and quality construction, the few boats that remain today hold clear value to collectors, as well as boat owners looking for a capable yet beautiful and historic wooden boat.Considered by some to be the pinnacle of classic boat styling, Fay & Bowens have a distinctive, refined shape with classic brass fittings. Operating as the Fay & Bowen Engine Company out of Geneva, NY in 1904 (this, after first starting as manufacturers of bicycle parts in 1895), Walter Fay and Ernest Bowen built an extensive dealer network to sell their engines and boats. In fact, the largest Fay & Bowen dealership in the United States was run by Walter Harris at his boatyard where Hall’s Boat sits today.

Check out what’s happening at our boat shop by going to Boat Shop Log, Photo Gallery and Boatworks Events. Or browse our Boatworks Services for restoration or new construction of wooden boats.Bernard and Herman Lyman, brothers from Cleveland, Ohio, starting building boats in the late 1800s. Their boats were designed and built to handle the powerful chop of Lake Erie. Lyman Boats quickly established a regional reputation for quality lapstrake rowboats and sailboats. In the 1970s, the company turned to fiberglass production and by 1980, Lyman had stopped new boat production entirely. By 1988 the new owner of Lyman reached out to Tom Koroknay, a Lyman enthusiast and restorer who ultimately purchased the wood boat patterns, jigs, tools, hardware… even the plans and archives dating back to the original days of the Lyman brothers remained, which included drawings, half models, racing trophies, and hull records. Today Koroknay, known affectionately as Doc Lyman, operates Koroknay’s Marine Woodworking/Lyman Boats in Lexington, Ohio.The Century Boat Company built some of pleasure boating’s most talked about styles. The company was founded in Milwaukee in 1926. It began by building fishing boats, sailboats, canoes, and the champion racing outboards. Century soon moved to its home of the next 60 years, Manistee, Michigan. There they added mahogany runabout inboards, and even challenged the small inboard race classes with the 14-foot Thunderbolt. Struggling through the lean years of the depression, Century offered a wide variety of finely crafted, 15- to 20-foot runabouts, utilities, and outboards. During World War II, the company supplied over 3,500 small assault boats — a dedication that earned the defense department’s Army-Navy “E” flag. In contrast to the decline experienced by noted wood boat producers at the time such as Gar Wood and Hacker, Century enjoyed a period of unprecedented prosperity after the War. The company immediately began production of the popular Sea Maid model and introduced the highly versatile utility type Resorter shortly thereafter. In 1955 the company introduced both the Coronado and the Arabian. Cadillac and Chrysler V8 engines were also added to the line-up. The new models of the ’50s, the Coronado, Arabian, Viking, and Palomino, boldly incorporated the stunning design trends of the automobile industry from that time. A well-restored Century from that era is highly collectible. Today, the Century Boat Company is based in Florida and produces fiberglass boats.Technological advancements that were important to the Age of Discovery in the 15th century were the adoption of the magnetic compass and advances in ship design.

In strong winds, the crew is directed to reduce the number of sails or, alternatively, the amount of each given sail that is presented to the wind by a process called reefing. To pull the sail up, seamen on the yardarm pull on reef tackles, attached to reef cringles, to pull the sail up and secure it with lines, called reef points. Dana spoke of the hardships of sail handling during high wind and rain or with ice covering the ship and its rigging.Iron-hulled sailing ships, often referred to as “windjammers” or “tall ships”, represented the final evolution of sailing ships at the end of the Age of Sail. They were built to carry bulk cargo for long distances in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. They were the largest of merchant sailing ships, with three to five masts and square sails, as well as other sail plans. They carried lumber, guano, grain or ore between continents. Later examples had steel hulls. Iron-hulled sailing ships were mainly built from the 1870s to 1900, when steamships began to outpace them economically, due to their ability to keep a schedule regardless of the wind. Steel hulls also replaced iron hulls at around the same time. Even into the twentieth century, sailing ships could hold their own on transoceanic voyages such as Australia to Europe, since they did not require bunkerage for coal nor fresh water for steam, and they were faster than the early steamers, which usually could barely make 8 knots (15 km/h).

Early navigational techniques employed observations of the sun, stars, waves and birdlife. In the 15th century, the Chinese were using the magnetic compass to identify direction of travel. By the 16th century in Europe, navigational instruments included the quadrant, the astrolabe, cross staff, dividers and compass. By the time of the Age of Exploration these tools were being used in combination with a log to measure speed, a lead line to measure soundings, and a lookout to identify potential hazards. Later, an accurate marine sextant became standard for determining latitude and was used with an accurate chronometer to calculate longitude.

Each rig is configured in a sail plan, appropriate to the size of the sailing craft. Both square-rigged and fore-and-aft rigged vessels have been built with a wide range of configurations for single and multiple masts.

Handling a sailing ship requires management of its sails to power—but not overpower—the ship and navigation to guide the ship, both at sea and in and out of harbors. Sailing vessels cannot sail directly into the wind. Instead, square-riggers must sail a course that is between 60° and 70° away from the wind direction and fore-and aft vessels can typically sail no closer than 45°. To reach a destination, sailing vessels may have to change course and allow the wind to come from the opposite side in a procedure, called tacking, when the wind comes across the bow during the maneuver. During the Age of Sail, ships’ hulls were under frequent attack by shipworm (which affected the structural strength of timbers), and barnacles and various marine weeds (which affected ship speed). Since before the common era, a variety of coatings had been applied to hulls to counter this effect, including pitch, wax, tar, oil, sulfur and arsenic. In the mid 18th century copper sheathing was developed as a defense against such bottom fouling. After coping with problems of galvanic deterioration of metal hull fasteners, sacrificial anodes were developed, which were designed to corrode, instead of the hull fasteners. The practice became widespread on naval vessels, starting in the late 18th century, and on merchant vessels, starting in the early 19th century, until the advent of iron and steel hulls.The four-masted, iron-hulled ship, introduced in 1875 with the full-rigged County of Peebles, represented an especially efficient configuration that prolonged the competitiveness of sail against steam in the later part of the 19th century. The largest example of such ships was the five-masted, full-rigged ship Preussen, which had a load capacity of 7,800 tonnes. Ships transitioned from all sail to all steam-power from the mid 19th century into the 20th. Five-masted Preussen used steam power for driving the winches, hoists and pumps, and could be manned by a crew of 48, compared with four-masted Kruzenshtern, which has a crew of 257.Ships of this era were only able to sail approximately 70° into the wind and tacked from one side to the other across the wind with difficulty, which made it challenging to avoid shipwrecks when near shores or shoals during storms. Nonetheless, such vessels reached India around Africa with Vasco da Gama, the Americas with Christopher Columbus, and around the world under Ferdinand Magellan.Every sailing ship has a sail plan that is adapted to the purpose of the vessel and the ability of the crew; each has a hull, rigging and masts to hold up the sails that use the wind to power the ship; the masts are supported by standing rigging and the sails are adjusted by running rigging. Hull shapes for sailing ships evolved from being relatively short and blunt to being longer and finer at the bow. By the nineteenth century, ships were built with reference to a half model, made from wooden layers that were pinned together. Each layer could be scaled to the actual size of the vessel in order to lay out its hull structure, starting with the keel and leading to the ship’s ribs. The ribs were pieced together from curved elements, called futtocks and tied in place until the installation of the planking. Typically, planking was caulked with a tar-impregnated yarn made from manila or hemp to make the planking watertight. Starting in the mid-19th century, iron was used first for the hull structure and later for its watertight sheathing. Sailing ships became longer and faster over time, with ship-rigged vessels carrying taller masts with more square sails. Other sail plans emerged, as well, that had just fore-and-aft sails (schooners), or a mixture of the two (brigantines, barques and barquentines).

Until the mid-19th century all vessels’ masts were made of wood formed from a single or several pieces of timber which typically consisted of the trunk of a conifer tree. From the 16th century, vessels were often built of a size requiring masts taller and thicker than could be made from single tree trunks. On these larger vessels, to achieve the required height, the masts were built from up to four sections (also called masts), known in order of rising height above the decks as the lower, top, topgallant and royal masts. Giving the lower sections sufficient thickness necessitated building them up from separate pieces of wood. Such a section was known as a made mast, as opposed to sections formed from single pieces of timber, which were known as pole masts. Starting in the second half of the 19th century, masts were made of iron or steel.The Ming dynasty (1368–1644) saw the use of junks as long-distance trading vessels. Chinese Admiral Zheng He reportedly sailed to India, Arabia, and southern Africa on a trade and diplomatic mission. Literary lore suggests that his largest vessel, the “Treasure Ship”, measured 400 feet (120 m) in length and 150 feet (46 m) in width, whereas modern research suggests that it was unlikely to have exceeded 70 metres (230 ft) in length. Given the limited maneuverability of sailing ships, it could be difficult to enter and leave harbor with the presence of a tide without coordinating arrivals with a flooding tide and departures with an ebbing tide. In harbor, a sailing ship stood at anchor, unless it needed to be loaded or unloaded at a dock or pier, in which case it might be warped alongside or towed by a tug. Warping involved using a long rope (the warp) between the ship and a fixed point on the shore. This was pulled on by a capstan on shore, or on the ship. This might be a multi-stage process if the route was not simple. If no fixed point was available, a kedge anchor might be taken out in a ship’s boat to a suitable point and the ship then pulled up to the kedge. Square rigged vessels could use backing and filling (of the sails) to manoeuvre in a tideway, or control could be maintained by drudging the anchor – lower the anchor until it touches the bottom so that the dragging anchor gives steerage way in the flow of the tide. The crew of a sailing ship is divided between officers (the captain and his subordinates) and seamen or ordinary hands. An able seaman was expected to “hand, reef, and steer” (handle the lines and other equipment, reef the sails, and steer the vessel). The crew is organized to stand watch—the oversight of the ship for a period—typically four hours each. Richard Henry Dana Jr. and Herman Melville each had personal experience aboard sailing vessels of the 19th century.

Early Austronesian sailors also influenced the development of sailing technologies in Sri Lanka and Southern India through the Austronesian maritime trade network of the Indian Ocean, the precursor to the spice trade route and the maritime silk road. Austronesians established the first maritime trade network with ocean-going merchant ships which plied the early trade routes from Southeast Asia from at least 1500 BC. They reached as far northeast as Japan and as far west as eastern Africa. They colonized Madagascar and their trade routes were the precursors to the spice trade route and the maritime silk road. They mainly facilitated trade of goods from China and Japan to South India, Sri Lanka, the Persian Gulf, and the Red Sea. Balance lugsails and tanja sails originated from this region. Vessels with such sails explored and traded along the western coast of Africa.

Dana described the crew of the merchant brig, Pilgrim, as comprising six to eight common sailors, four specialist crew members (the steward, cook, carpenter and sailmaker), and three officers: the captain, the first mate and the second mate. He contrasted the American crew complement with that of other nations on whose similarly sized ships the crew might number as many as 30. Larger merchant vessels had larger crews.

The Indian Ocean was the venue for increasing trade between India and Africa between 1200 and 1500. The vessels employed would be classified as dhows with lateen rigs. During this interval such vessels grew in capacity from 100 to 400 tonnes. Dhows were often built with teak planks from India and Southeast Asia, sewn together with coconut husk fiber—no nails were employed. This period also saw the implementation of center-mounted rudders, controlled with a tiller.

Sailing ships prior to the mid-19th century used wood masts with hemp-fiber standing rigging. As rigs became taller by the end of the 19th century, masts relied more heavily on successive spars, stepped one atop the other to form the whole, from bottom to top: the lower mast, top mast, and topgallant mast. This construction relied heavily on support by a complex array of stays and shrouds. Each stay in either the fore-and-aft or athwartships direction had a corresponding one in the opposite direction providing counter-tension. Fore-and-aft the system of tensioning started with the stays that were anchored in front each mast. Shrouds were tensioned by pairs deadeyes, circular blocks that had the large-diameter line run around them, whilst multiple holes allowed smaller line—lanyard—to pass multiple times between the two and thereby allow tensioning of the shroud. After the mid-19th century square-rigged vessels were equipped with iron wire standing rigging, which was superseded with steel wire in the late 19th century.The compass was an addition to the ancient method of navigation based on sightings of the sun and stars. The compass was invented by Chinese. It had been used for navigation in China by the 11th century and was adopted by the Arab traders in the Indian Ocean. The compass spread to Europe by the late 12th or early 13th century. Use of the compass for navigation in the Indian Ocean was first mentioned in 1232. The Europeans used a “dry” compass, with a needle on a pivot. The compass card was also a European invention.By the time of the Age of Discovery—starting in the 15th century—square-rigged, multi-masted vessels were the norm and were guided by navigation techniques that included the magnetic compass and making sightings of the sun and stars that allowed transoceanic voyages. The Age of Sail reached its peak in the 18th and 19th centuries with large, heavily armed battleships and merchant sailing ships.When tacking, a square-rigged vessel’s sails must be presented squarely to the wind and thus impede forward motion as they are swung around via the yardarms through the wind as controlled by the vessel’s running rigging, using braces—adjusting the fore and aft angle of each yardarm around the mast—and sheets attached to the clews (bottom corners) of each sail to control the sail’s angle to the wind. The procedure is to turn the vessel into the wind with the hind-most fore-and-aft sail (the spanker), pulled to windward to help turn the ship through the eye of the wind. Once the ship has come about, all the sails are adjusted to align properly with the new tack. Because square-rigger masts are more strongly braced from behind than from ahead, tacking is a dangerous procedure in strong winds; the ship may lose forward momentum (become caught in stays) and the rigging may fail from the wind coming from ahead. The ship may also lose momentum at wind speeds of less than 10 knots (19 km/h). Under these conditions, the choice may be to wear ship—to turn the ship away from the wind and around 240° onto the next tack (60° off the wind).

In the 20th century, the DynaRig allowed central, automated control of all sails in a manner that obviates the need for sending crew aloft. This was developed in the 1960s in Germany as a low-carbon footprint propulsion alternative for commercial ships. The rig automatically sets and reefs sails; its mast rotates to align the sails with the wind. The sailing yachts Maltese Falcon and Black Pearl employ the rig.

Early examples were the schooners and brigantines, called Baltimore clippers, used for blockade running or as privateers in the War of 1812 and afterwards for smuggling opium or illegally transporting slaves. Larger clippers, usually ship or barque rigged and with a different hull design, were built for the California trade (from east coast USA ports to San Francisco) after gold was discovered in 1848 – the associated ship-building boom lasted until 1854.Other clippers worked on the Australian immigrant routes or, in smaller quantities, in any role where a fast passage secured higher rates of freight or passenger fares. Whilst many clippers were ship rigged, the definition is not limited to any rig.

Clippers were built for trade between the United Kingdom and China after the East India Company lost its monopoly in 1834. The primary cargo was tea, and sailing ships, particularly tea clippers, dominated this long distance route until the development of fuel efficient steamships coincided with the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869.A sailing ship is a sea-going vessel that uses sails mounted on masts to harness the power of wind and propel the vessel. There is a variety of sail plans that propel sailing ships, employing square-rigged or fore-and-aft sails. Some ships carry square sails on each mast—the brig and full-rigged ship, said to be “ship-rigged” when there are three or more masts. Others carry only fore-and-aft sails on each mast, for instance some schooners. Still others employ a combination of square and fore-and-aft sails, including the barque, barquentine, and brigantine. A sailing ship crew manages the running rigging of each square sail. Each sail has two sheets that control its lower corners, two braces that control the angle of the yard, two clewlines, four buntlines and two reef tackles. All these lines must be manned as the sail is deployed and the yard raised. They use a halyard to raise each yard and its sail; then they pull or ease the braces to set the angle of the yard across the vessel; they pull on sheets to haul lower corners of the sail, clews, out to yard below. Under way, the crew manages reef tackles, haul leeches, reef points, to manage the size and angle of the sail; bowlines pull the leading edge of the sail (leech) taut when close hauled. When furling the sail, the crew uses clewlines, haul up the clews and buntlines to haul up the middle of sail up; when lowered, lifts support each yard. A fore-and-aft rig permits the wind to flow past the sail, as the craft head through the eye of the wind. Most rigs pivot around a stay or the mast, while this occurs. For a jib, the old leeward sheet is released as the craft heads through the wind and the old windward sheet is tightened as the new leeward sheet to allow the sail to draw wind. Mainsails are often self-tending and slide on a traveler to the opposite side. On certain rigs, such as lateens and luggers, the sail may be partially lowered to bring it to the opposite side.Early sea-going sailing vessels were used by the Austronesian peoples. The invention of catamarans, outriggers, and crab claw sails enabled the Austronesian Expansion at around 3000 to 1500 BC. From Taiwan, they rapidly colonized the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia, then sailed further onwards to Micronesia, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar. Austronesian rigs were distinctive in that they had spars supporting both the upper and lower edges of the sails (and sometimes in between), in contrast to western rigs which only had a spar on the upper edge.

The term “clipper” started to be used in the first quarter of the 19th century. It was applied to sailing vessels designed primarily for speed. Only a small proportion of sailing vessels could properly have the term applied to them.Clippers were generally built for a specific trade: those in the California trade had to withstand the seas of Cape Horn, whilst Tea Clippers were designed for the lighter and contrary winds of the China Sea. All had fine lines, with a well streamlined hull and carried a large sail area. To get the best of this, a skilled and determined master was needed in command.

Melville described the crew complement of the frigate warship, United States, as about 500—including officers, enlisted personnel and 50 Marines. The crew was divided into the starboard and larboard watches. It was also divided into three tops, bands of crew responsible for setting sails on the three masts; a band of sheet-anchor men, whose station was forward and whose job was to tend the fore-yard, anchors and forward sails; the after guard, who were stationed aft and tended the mainsail, spanker and man the various sheets, controlling the position of the sails; the waisters, who were stationed midships and had menial duties attending the livestock, etc.; and the holders, who occupied the lower decks of the vessel and were responsible for the inner workings of the ship. He additionally named such positions as, boatswains, gunners, carpenters, coopers, painters, tinkers, stewards, cooks and various boys as functions on the man-of-war. 18-19th century ships of the line had a complement as high as 850.

By the middle of the 17th century, warships were carrying increasing numbers of cannon on three decks. Naval tactics evolved to bring each ship’s firepower to bear in a line of battle—coordinated movements of a fleet of warships to engage a line of ships in the enemy fleet. Carracks with a single cannon deck evolved into galleons with as many as two full cannon decks, which evolved into the man-of-war, and further into the ship of the line—designed for engaging the enemy in a line of battle. One side of a ship was expected to shoot broadsides against an enemy ship at close range. In the 18th century, the small and fast frigate and sloop-of-war—too small to stand in the line of battle—evolved to convoy trade, scout for enemy ships and blockade enemy coasts.At the beginning of the 15th century, the carrack was the most capable European ocean-going ship. It was carvel-built and large enough to be stable in heavy seas. It was capable of carrying a large cargo and the provisions needed for very long voyages. Later carracks were square-rigged on the foremast and mainmast and lateen-rigged on the mizzenmast. They had a high rounded stern with large aftcastle, forecastle and bowsprit at the stem. As the predecessor of the galleon, the carrack was one of the most influential ship designs in history; while ships became more specialized in the following centuries, the basic design remained unchanged throughout this period.

India’s maritime history began during the 3rd millennium BCE when inhabitants of the Indus Valley initiated maritime trading contact with Mesopotamia. Indian kingdoms such as the Kalinga from as early as 2nd century CE are believed to have had sailing ships. One of the earliest instances of documented evidence of Indian sailing ship building comes from the mural of three-masted ship in the Ajanta caves that date back to 400-500 CE.Cannons were introduced in the 14th century, but did not become common at sea until they could be reloaded quickly enough to be reused in the same battle. The size of a ship required to carry a large number of cannon made oar-based propulsion impossible, and warships came to rely primarily on sails. The sailing man-of-war emerged during the 16th century.Coastal top-sail schooners with a crew as small as two managing the sail handling became an efficient way to carry bulk cargo, since only the fore-sails required tending while tacking and steam-driven machinery was often available for raising the sails and the anchor.

Large Austronesian trading ships with as many as four sails were recorded by Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) scholars as the kunlun bo or K’un-lun po (崑崙舶, lit. “ship of the Kunlun people”). They were booked by Chinese Buddhist pilgrims for passage to Southern India and Sri Lanka. Bas reliefs of large Javanese outriggers ships with various configurations of tanja sails are also found in the Borobudur temple, dating back to the 8th century CE.Halyards, used to raise and lower the yards, are the primary supporting lines. In addition, square rigs have lines that lift the sail or the yard from which it is suspended that include: brails, buntlines, lifts and leechlines. Bowlines and clew lines shape a square sail. To adjust the angle of the sail to wind braces are used to adjust the fore and aft angle of a yard of a square sail, while sheets attach to the clews (bottom corners) of a sail to control the sail’s angle to the wind. Sheets run aft, whereas tacks are used to haul the clew of a square sail forward.

25ft-30ft. $4,000-$80,000/ $3,000-$5,000 per annum kept at a marina Typically sleeps four or more. Galley, heads, sometimes heating and hot and cold water. Ocean-going with a full range of navigation equipment, GPS and echo sounder, etc.

Classic wooden boat ownership trains the soul in a way that no modern craft can. Tolerance, decisiveness and coolness under fire are all honed and refined and help to change an enthusiastic amateur into a far more complete sailor. So, read on and expand your horizons.

Classic boat ownership is truly one of the few recreations that appeals at every level. The wide range of affordable boats available are within the budget of most sailors, starting at around $1,000 for a modest little clinker dinghy to $80,000+ for a cruising yacht. There really is something for everyone in the classic boat world.As interest in wooden boats has grown exponentially over the last decade, modern boat design has harked back to craft being built in more traditional styles, much to the chagrin of the purists.

For some, sailing is a solitary affair, for others, it’s a more social recreation. For classic boat owners, there are a plethora of regattas and events all over the world. Rather than being competitive, many of these events are just a diverse range of sailors united by their love of classic wooden boats.As previously discussed, the range of classic wooden boats available is vast. As little as $500 could launch you into Swallows and Amazons fashion with an open wooden dinghy whilst if your pockets are somewhat deeper, $40 million could secure you a three-masted schooner! Ideally, a small 25ft cruising yacht would make a fine introduction into the world of classic boats. The main thing to do is to bear in mind exactly where, and with who, you want to sail and make your choice of boat appropriately. Ask yourself the following:

Even if you know absolutely nothing about cars, you can always recognise a classic car. You may not know if it’s a Jaguar, MG or Morris Minor but there’s just something about it that tells you it’s a classic. Whether it’s the chromed grill or the patina of the paint finish, there’s just that certain something that screams classic at you. It’s the same with classic boats.Taking these factors into account, as well as the standard considerations you would apply to any boat purchase, such as upkeep or mooring fees, will help you decide upon which type of craft is the one for you. “Go for something less than 25ft (7.6m). A 40-footer would be crackers. I advise buyers against it. There’s no point in a wooden classic unless you enjoy looking after wood, but if you do, and you know you’re handy, I wouldn’t say no to starting with a restoration. Just make sure you’re somewhere there are plenty of other people doing similar jobs. Read Classic Boat! And read some of the many good books out there.” Samantha Wilson has spent her entire life on and around boats, from tiny sailing dinghies all the way up to superyachts. She writes for many boating and yachting publications, top charter agencies, and some of the largest travel businesses in the industry, combining her knowledge and passion of boating, travel and writing to create topical, useful and engaging content.

However, coming to an agreement over the precise definition is anything but simple. For example, an old working boat, or a boat of working type is not considered to be a “classic”, rather it is termed as being “traditional”. Not all wooden boats are classic and not all classics are wooden. In the same way that car designers frequently re-visit classic designs and re-vamp them for a new generation such as Volkswagen did with the eponymous Beetle, as do boat designers.Of course, like most things in life, wooden or classic boat ownership isn’t just about sailing on a millpond of nostalgic delight. There are a few storms fronts and sandbanks you’ll need to navigate along the way but don’t let that put you off.

Alberto Galassi is raving about his Riva, a 1970 wooden Aquarama, formed of cedar from Lebanon and mahogany. The CEO of the Ferretti Group, which now owns the Riva boat brand, he took correspondent Seth Doane on a ride on Italy’s picturesque Lake Iseo, racing past Riva’s factory. Riva’s Aquarama, designed by Carlo Riva, debuted in 1962 during the glamorous la dolce vita years of Italy’s post-war boom. Stars including Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bardot and Elizabeth Taylor owned Rivas, and the boat itself played a supporting role in dozens of films, from “It Started in Naples” and “Oceans Twelve” to “Men in Black: International.” Some of those original design choices are still echoed decades later in the new Anniversario model. It’s a limited-edition tribute to the Aquarama, which Riva stopped producing in 1996, spawning a new business: maintenance, the costly process of keeping them up.

“That’s our challenge,” Galassi said. “That’s in details. Details that remind you of the previous models, the style. It’s bloody difficult job, I can tell you!”

And times have changed for the company. While these wooden classics may be the spirit of Riva, the real money today is in super-yachts, which Galassi says account for around 70-percent of Riva sales.Back in Italy, at Riva, Doane saw some of that same attention to detail, as Fabrizio Sonzogno sanded wood for the Anniversario, which will get 20 coats of varnish.

“That evocative feeling of the Sixties, and the glamour attached,” he replied. “It is the design. They were sort of the equivalent of a lovely Cadillac on the water.”Sadly, most us will have to live without a Riva. One example, nearly 50 years old, has gone up in value to roughly three-quarters of a million dollars.”Riva is beyond boating; Riva is a myth,” Galassi said of the classic Riva speedboats, which have been in the hands of royalty, movie stars, rock stars and tycoons. “Let’s be honest. I mean, when you say, ‘I have a Ferrari,’ you need to say you ‘have a car’? Everybody knows what a Ferrari is. Riva is the same thing.”

“Condemned! Because we live around beauty. We’re surrounded by beauty. Something is not nice-looking, something is not beautiful? It gives us shock. So, we can’t live without.”And talk about product placement: Riva was featured in Portofino this May, shuttling guests at the latest Kardashian wedding. “They are the new Sophia Loren,” Galassi said. “They talk to the new generation. Why not? Times are changing.”

Freebody’s company makes its own wooden boats, but with some updates. Electric models still have more traditional details, and extras, such as a picnic drawer, “which is becoming quite a must-have,” he said.Designed by Uffa Fox as the Cowes Harbour Masters Launch, built by Clare Lallows of Cowes. Subsequently taken to Beaulieu and used as the Hrabour Masters launch on the river there where she still resides. Professional refit in 2020/2021 by Bucklers Hard Boatyard, now in lovely condition and looking very smart. Yanmar 48hp diesel engine. Sheltered wheel steering with outside tiller as well. Full cockpit cover. an unusual boat with striking looks, perfect for a buyer looking for a boat a little out of the ordinary.

The Wooden Ships website is the only place on the web dedicated to advertising and selling small traditional boats, dinghies, cabin boat and river launches. The team is fortunate to have some of the world’s most beautiful small wooden boats for sale. We consider it both a pleasure and a responsibility to guide you in selecting the boat that is your perfect match.

Built by the current owner while studying at the Lyme Regis School of Boatbuilding in 2011 to an Andrew Wolstenholme design. The original design was for an electric motor but the owner modified it for a small diesel. Built from double diagonal Khaya mahogany which gives a rigid but light hull that does not dry out and move when ashore for long periods. Nanni 10hp twin cylinder diesel, fresh water cooled. Serviced regularly and with very low hours. Comes with a galvanised road trailer and cover, a delightful launch perfect for pottering around the river.

Designed and built by Fabian bush, a well respected very skilled boat builder. The boat was commissioned by a client but due to personal circumstances he is no longer able to take delivery and use the boat so she is being offered for sale as a brand new and complete vessel. Upon completion the boat was tested and certified under the RCD scheme and put afloat for sea trials, but otherwise she has been dry stored and unused. built using modern construction methods of epoxy glued plywood planking making her very durable and easy to maintain. complete with trailer covers and electric outboard engine this is an absolutely ready to go trailer sailer in as new condition.

Built in Cape Cod in 2002, the design based on the famed New England MacKenzie Cuttyhunk Bass Boats, constructed using modern methods with cold molded mahogany sheathed in Kevlar and finished in Awlgrip paint systems. Imported into the UK by the current owner, fully certified to RCR standards. Steyr 164hp turbo charged inboard diesel gives 17 knots cruising speed for excellent fuel consumption, she uses only 0.8 litres/nautical mile. 2 berths under the foredeck makes for a nice sheltered space. Large open cockpit with high bulwarks, an excellent space for the family. SBS road trailer means she can be easily towed on the road, all up weight is less than 3 tons. A very elegant and unusual alternative to the very boring RIB or Boston Whaler, a superb boat for someone looking for a boat that stands out from the crowd and offers something a little bit special.Some of the cheap small sailboats for sale on the Wooden Ships website include dinghies, day boats and river launches. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about any small boats featured on our website, or if you’d like to sell your boat.

Small classic sailing boats are great for people wanting to start sailing. They’re relatively affordable and classic in style, and you can often find older examples for a fraction of the cost of a new boat. Plus, they’ll still provide you with years of enjoyment.