My wife and I  hadn’t really been in the market for an old boat. But when the call came in to us about an old “1966” Chris-Craft, we felt obligated to take a look.

The boat rested on the outskirts of Ottumwa, a small city in south central Iowa. The place of rest for this hull had been on a small acreage. This small tract of land was tucked into a wooded area at the end of a long gravel lane. There is nobody that would have known this boat existed had it not been for the phone call to my in-laws marina.

After visiting this alleged 1966 Chris-Craft and forwarding the hull ID number out to Jerry Conrad at the Mariners’ Museum, I received a surprising response. As if there were any doubt in what we had found, here was the news:

 

Bill,

I have some very good news for you. The engine number 23381 (95 HP Model K engine) and the hull number 71938 are original, and that is the engine that was originally installed into that hull. However the hull is not a 1966 18' hull. It is a 1942 17' Deluxe Runabout Model 42-9. This hull left the factory on May 14, 1942 and was shipped to Chicago. The upholstery color was aquamarine.

The 17' Deluxe runabout first was sold for the 1937 sales year, this design ended in 1939. It’s design was changed to include more tumblehome and this version sold from 1940 to 1942.

Hull Number            Years             Total

71000-71528          1937-39         529

71529-71954          1940-42         425

What do you think of that?

Jerry Conrad