Rare wood boat on my lake ?

   I saw a beautiful wood boat on my lake last weekend. Maybe Pete has seen it somewhere in his ACBS travels. I stopped to check it out but the owner didn't appear to be around and I didn't have my camera. Pretty darn cool boat for sure. Found a pic on the internet, but for some reason the image uploader won't post it. Trying to get more info but it seems to be somewhat limited. It is a 28' triple cockpit built by Rochester Boat Works and it has a V12 engine in it. Supposedly it sank in the St Lawrence and was salvaged and restored some years ago. For some reason, I can't even get back to the page where I found the pic.

The boat is named "MR.BENNY" and under the name it says HOLLYWOOD.
The only info I can find on it says that there are only 3 known examples and it's one of the rarest wood boats in the world. The boat is absolutely stunning to see in the water.

Know anything about the history of this boat Pete??

   Mike
   

   Thanks Larry. I did see that piece about the new owners and the boat being on display in NH. John Perkins owns the camp it's docked at , so I can safely assume it's here to stay.

Here is a link to the pic I found.LINK

    It is tied up on a dock directly across from Jeff Kostis' place on the lake. Apparently it was restored by Wayne Mocksfield,who is some sort of wood boat icon.

    Mike

   

Mr. Benny is a 1926 28'9'' Rochester ultra sport runabout. It is powered by a Scripps model 302 Ho. 900 cu.in. v12 twin plug engine. It is one of two known, the other being located in California. There is no such thing as a 19' Rochester. 28' and 30' were the only models built. The boat was located by Wayne Mocksfield in 1980 in the Thousand Islands, New York. It under went an extensive three year restoration and has since been a multiple award winner. Most recently, it won best overall in class at Lake George. The boat was designed by A.W. "Bill" MacKerer during a brief tenure at Rochester Boat Works, Rochester New York from 1926 to 1928. He later went to Chris Craft and became their lead design engineer until he retired. Two books worth reading about Bill and the Rochester are; "A View from the Bilge" and "Building Chris Craft, Inside the Factories." Mr. Benny summers on Mousam Lake in Acton Maine or is resting comfortably at his home. Thank you for noticing, it is a stunning piece of boating history and is regarded by most in the wood boat community as "if not the finest, one of less than a handful. See you on the lake.

John R. Perkins
- owner

John,

Welcome and thanks for the story on your beautiful boat. I'm curious. How did you find us? Just stumble across the site and this thread and there was your boat, or had you heard about it and came looking for it?

Don't know. Prior to 1922, it is believed boats were of the displacement type. Chris-Craft's first planing boat was built 1n 1922 using a Glen Curtiss converted airplane engine,an OX-5 type. Rochester Boat Works did advertise a line of runabouts in 1919 ranging from 19' to 35' That might be true .However, there were many unsuccessful attempts. Elco being one of them . The fact of the matter is, Rochester Boat Works claim to fame with regard to runabouts is due entirely to A.W. (Bill) MacKerer). He worked for Chris Craft prior to and after leaving Rochester,1926 thru 1928. During that time at Rochester he designed the ultra sport runabout, available in 28' and 30'. They ,like boats of that fintage, perhaps due low production, had Roman Numeral hull numbers. Bill MacKerer had been at Chris Craft for at least 3 years by the the time your 19' runabout ,1930, was built. You can think what you want ,and if it's yours,that's all that matters. However, it cannot be authenticated. Buyer BEWARE                                                              

Mike, I'm aware of the 47 chris craft you mention. I know Chauncey and Kenny both well. I don't believe I've met your father in law, however, we might have spoke in passing. It's nice to see the old wood on the lake. Hope he can keep her running. It's a pleasure . Feel free to stop at the camp when your out and about. Merilee and I are there all summer. Ice out,docks in, lets go boating. Have a great summer. John.

I believe i saw that boat as well, cruising the lake Sat night.
Where are you on the lake mousamfan?

Mike

I grew up going to mousam and learned to ski bad there . we were a half mile from the bridge under the road store . I loved it there .

I know the boat, but not the owner :) So that is Steve... good to know! Will say Hi next time I see him. I hope to get my dad to bring his barracuda back to the lake this summer. He is a NH Marine Patrol officer and doesn't have enough play time, so it sits on a trailer at his house. Waiting. Hopefully we can meet other CC owners and swap stories, meantime I surf this forum. I've been chomping at the bit to solve a skip problem when stepping into the throttle, I think it's the Carter AFB carb.
Hope to see you on the lake!

We have two boats currently, a 1971 14' Penn Yan runabout with its original Merc 50hp outboard and an 18' Rinker bow rider. The Penn Yan is here with us in CT as I'm in the middle of restoring it. It was my dad's boat that he bought new when I was a kid. The Rinker was a neighbor's boat that was too good a deal to pass up. It's on Mousam for the summer. Then there's the boat I plan to build, a 20' Glen-L design mahogany barrelback inboard called a Key Largo. I just need to finish the Penn Yan first before I can start in on that!

75 Tique wrote: Mousam Fan wrote:    Then there's the boat I plan to build, a 20' Glen-L design mahogany barrelback inboard called a Key Largo. No small task, but sometimes I think it would almost be easier to start from scratch than to restore one like Alan is doing. Key Largo

Larry,
Yes, I agree that it's sometimes easier to build from scratch but you don't end up with the same boat!!! Keep in mind that Alan is dealing with a double plank hull side/transom as well. The only other boat manufacturer that did that was Garwood!!! It complicates the restoration.

I've known a couple guys who built Glen-L's. They both have had them for sale for years. You can't give them away. The same holds true for some of the reproductions out there and they are professionally built!

I agree with both assessments. Alan is going to have a real collectors item/restoration and at the same time, sometimes its not about sellin' its about buildin' and havin'. I've got a Glen-L or comparable on my to-do list.

   Threadjackin' my own thread:

Mousam Fan wrote: I am located in Carpenter's Cove.

   Who is the meatstick in Carpenter's with the white/purple nautique with the black tower that almost ran me over yesterday while pulling a tube full of kids? I'm pretty sure I've seen that boat tied up right near you based on the description you gave of your location in that cove.

   Mike