The Center of Family Fun for Over 81 Years By Susan Conroy, ACBS Member “Cruise all day for less than a dollar spent on gas.” That introductory sentence was about a 17-foot cruiser, with blue prints available, in the April 1939 issue of Popular Science. It sounded good to my dad, Hubert Lee Hayes. At…
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By Rachel Conley, Chris-Craft Archivist, The Mariners’ Museum and Park, Newport News, Virginia In 1986, The Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News, Virginia, was extremely fortunate to receive the Chris-Craft company archives for boats made from 1922 through 1982. While the donation did not include all of the records produced during those six decades,…
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Photographer and Adirondack Chapter member, Kent O. Smith, Jr. of KAOS Imagery, is a friendly face behind the lens. “I sometimes think of myself as a Phloatographer,” he laughs as he balances precariously on the gunwale of a boat to get his shot. In this ACBS Member Profile Q&A we learn more about Kent, his…
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From the Chapter Development Committee On Tuesday January 23rd at 7:00PM EST we will be hosting our next virtual Chapter Round Table entitled, the “Un-boring Boat Show.” This workshop will be led by Mike McBride and Jim Barrick. All chapters that run boats shows, regardless of size, are encouraged to join the discussion and share…
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By Bjorn Bakken, Bay State Chapter Indoor boat show season is upon us and Baystate Classic Boat Club was invited back to the New England Boat show for the first time since the pandemic. The promoter offered us a 60’ x 40’ booth at no cost and donated the carpeting as well. So we had…
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by Brian Fogarty member of the Indian Lake Chapter (A note from ACBS Headquarters…this article originally ran in the WWW in April 2020, and is republished today for ACBS Member, Jerry Laufer, who shared some wonderful stories today about the boats he grew up on, including his family’s 1950’s 14-foot Wagemaker with a little 18hp…
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Story and modern day photos by Chris Bullen, Toronto Chapter I have boated all over North America, and one thing that is very noticeable to someone who grew up in Muskoka is that other lakes allow very few boathouses to be built. Boathouses have been on Muskoka since 1868, about as long as we have…
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By Roberta Hegy, Glacier Lakes Chapter All my life I have been a hands-on person. I was drafted into the crafts by my father who needed an extra hand and really enjoyed working with him. He taught me many skills and those interests later developed to become a way of life and a good living.…
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By John Young, Water Wonderland Chapter I’m John Young and have been a member of ACBS for many years, and boats have long been a part of my life. I have two wooden boats, a 1958 Lyman 16.5ft outboard with a 1958 Johnson 35hp and a 1953 Chris-Craft 17ft Special Sportsman with a 1959 Chris-Craft…
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By Walter Hardin, Blue Ridge Chapter Yes, really. My wife Jane and I wanted to visit our dear friends of 45 years, Peggy and Michael Gerling near Munich, Germany, and take a driving trip somewhere in Europe to a place that we had never been. Our friends suggested Croatia. Not a spot that Jane nor…
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From the Thousand Island Chapter and Headquarters Here in Clayton, NY, we’ve been celebrating the holidays for the past few weeks, including at the Annual Christmas Parade. The Clayton Christmas Parade is good old small town fun, and people line the streets to see the how the floats and fire trucks get decorated. The night…
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From the Chapter Development Committee It is that time of the year again… time for ACBS Chapter leadership to complete their End-of-Year reports. These surveys should be completed by each the 2023 Chapter Presidents (with support from the rest of their board officers) for their chapters. This is an online survey, and has now been…
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