NIB 16/0 Lighthouse Penn

[ez2cdave]

It came to a head in the Nylon (Stockings) Riots of 1945. 
-steve

"Nylon Riots" . . . I just had to Google that.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon_riots

http://nowiknow.com/a-run-on-nylons/

Tight Lines !

[Deepfins]

     Ok, so here is the next batch of stuff, records of the history of Doc's boat, the Doris M II, and his foray into the world of running a charter boat.  The Doris M II was built by George Bishop, Bishop Boat Yard, Patchoque, NY in 1936.  The boat was a motor-sailer, 40 ft long, 12.5 ft wide, powered by a 110hp 8cyl Chrysler Royal motor, with a 60hp 6cyl Chrysler Ace for trolling.  At the age of 50, Doc bought the boat used on 9-4-37 for $4500.  He immediately took it to the Freeport Point Shipyard to have a bunch of work completed on it.  Note the 2-page receipt, dated 9/30/37.   

     Doc's intention was to charter the boat out when he wasn't using it, hoping the income from charters would pay for the boat, essentially allowing him to fish for free.  Doc hired a boat captain, and shortly after, they were off and running.  They believed the boat would pay for itself in 3 years.  The problem was the boat was notoriously unreliable.  The motors never ran right, the radio required constant repairs, and the yellow pine wood hull leaked constantly.  Due to the depression and competition from other charter sport fishing boats, they couldn't keep the boat chartered out enough to pay for the cost of owning and operating it.  And to top it off, Doc was frustrated by the Cpt's book keeping skills and lack of communication. 

     Doc and his captain parted ways in October of 1939, and the Doris M II was put into storage.  He listed the boat for sale in 1940 for $5800.  He tried selling it to the Coast Guard and Navy in 1941 for $6000, but they didn't want it.   Doc finally sold it on 4-2-42 for the handsome sum of $2650.  Below are scans of some of Doc's records, including correspondence between him and his boat captain.  There is some really neat history, here.  Due to the limit on # of attachments per post, it will take quite a few posts to upload all the scans, so for the sake of continuity, please do not post any replies until I have everything up.  The first picture is of Doc and his Cpt in happier times.

[Deepfins]

A couple of receipts for the work he had completed on the boat shortly after purchase.

[Deepfins]

Letter from Cpt to Doc, 12/17/37

[Deepfins]

Letter from Doc to Cpt, 1-11-38

[Deepfins]

Letter from Doc to Cpt, 3/14/38

[Deepfins]

Letter from Cpt to Doc, 3/21/38

[Deepfins]

Page 5 from previous letter from Cpt to Doc, 3/21/38, and letter from Doc to Cpt dated 4/16/38

[Deepfins]

Letter fro Cpt to Doc, 5/16/38

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Letter from doc to Cpt, 11/15/38

You can see from reading the back and forth that things are not going very good.

[Deepfins]

Some other items, including a gas receipt, a Schultz receipt, and his classified ad to sell the boat.

[Deepfins]

Letter from Coast Guard trying to talk him down in price

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Receipts from shipyard while in storage.

[Deepfins]

Finally, a scan of a partial list of phone numbers of other boats.  I am guessing this list was kept on his boat, should he need to contact another vessel.  Notice a very familiar name on the list??!!  Hint: IGFA Hall of Fame

I hope some of you will enjoy looking over some of this stuff as much as I did.  These records really provide a glimpse of what it was like to own and operate a boat before the war.  Reading through their letters, you really get a sense of their frustration and disappointment at not being able to make a go of it.

Cheers,
John

[Penn Chronology]

Fantastic stuff! All in my backyard, so to speak. Love it.