“Neenah” was named for the Winnebago Indian word for Water. She was constructed in December, 1959 by just two workers at the Thompson Brothers Boat Works in Peshtigo, Wisconsin. A custom order in 1958, she was shipped overland to her first (and only other owner) in 1960 in Portland, Oregon where she spent eight summers as a water skiing and picnic boat on the Columbia and WiIlamette rivers.
In the fall of 1968, Neenah was stored “for the season” in a barn near Jantzen beach. Unplanned family changes literally saved her from the common fate of so many thousands of these wooden speedboats, as she waited to be discovered in “deep dust and disrepair”, in 2016 resting on the same trailer exactly as she had been stored away, thirty-six years later.
She was purchased from her original owner and brought to our home garage here in Port Townsend to undergo what became a two-year restoration to her “as stored away” condition.
Special care was taken to use the same tools, techniques and products that were used in her original construction, and only the mahogany outer keel was in need of full replacement. Electronics were upgraded to fused new lines, and even the original light bulbs are still glowing brightly. Her chrome and nickel plated brightwork needed only cleaning and polishing and her accessories, instrumentation and wood elements are original down to the gimbaled cup holder on the passenger side. The special-ordered “space age windshield” is years ahead of it’s time, and the original water decals show some of her travels.
Her power source, a 90 hp Johnson “Golden Meteor” motor was the first 90 hp motor ever produced for recreational use. This V4 mega gas-guzzler was promoted as the fastest, strongest, most powerful and economical motor available, and was nicknamed “The Big Dog On The Lake” in its time. Neenah’s current owners and Leif Erickson Outboards right here in Port Townsend have rebuilt and fine-tuned it to running perfection.
The more than 1,400 (more, but we stopped counting) recessed brass bolts and nut holding her plywood lapstrake panels together were individually re-tightened before sealing them in, and we can happily state that she is as water-tight as she was fifty-eight years ago. The unique SeaCoaster hull design with signature mahogany splash rails was later purchased by Chris Craft for use on their own runabouts.
As with all wooden boats, Neenah will always be a work in progress. We are proud to be able to help resurrect her life as a dynamic symbol of the Mid-Century era in recreational boating.