TOPIC: Clipper Craft

I came across a Clipper Craft recently and thought to dig into the history of this brand. There have been a few companies that made Clipper Craft Boats such as the Chestnut Canoe Company LTD of Peterborough, Ontario and Fredericton, New Brunswick and Clipper Craft Mfg. of Portland, Oregon.

According to a 1990 article in Lakeland Boating (Vol. 45), in 1962 George Spicer bought Clipper Craft, a company in Indiana and moved operations to Cadillac, MI. The name was changed four years later to Saf-T-Mate. In 1975, Spicer sold out and the company became Four Winns.

I wonder about the similarity of Clipper Craft boats to Plastyle Co.'s The 400 Line models:

www.fiberglassics.com/library/Plastyle

Very interesting, in that there is a Spicer's Boat City in Houghton Lake Michigan. I'm betting it's all in the family. We had a cabin up there in Prudenville and dad moved the cabin and built his retirement house on that lot, on the lake. Use to get most of our boat needs from them. I'll have to check with my step mom, she pretty much new/knows everyone up there.

Bob