At the age of 67 years, M/V Suellen is a fine example of Ed Monk’s designs from the late 1930’s. She was built in West Seattle by Louis A. Hascall, a master carpenter who was a supervisor at Blanchard Boat company. Launched in 1951, she was christened by his granddaughter, Suellen. She’s cruised Pacific NW waters of Puget Sound and the Columbia River for all these years. Beginning in 2008, the current owners restored her to her original appearance and modernized all her systems. Fortunately, prior owners kept her under cover in boathouses for most of her life. Among her most notable owners was Rolf Kelp, prominent New York graphic artist and founder of the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, Oregon. The ship’s log notes William Garden, the famous Pacific NW naval architect, joined Klep for a cruise in the early 1960’s. Suellen features elegant bronze art deco stanchions, beautiful original oxide yellow roofs and decks, mostly full lengths yellow cedar planking and a solid mahogany house. The interior is well proportioned for living aboard, typical of Ed monk’s comfortable cruisers. This Monk design was one of the earliest examples of the transition from vertical lines of vessels of the early 1930’s, to cleaner, more streamlined designs of the mid-century.
