Chris Byer wrote:

Thanks to Chris for this one, and to the many others who have responded.

As Rex Ott pointed out, if one-offs are considered, one can go way
back in history to view motorized cruising boats:

http://www.nwclassicyacht.org/gallery.htm

The earliest custom power cruiser I have been able to find is GloryBe
from 1914:

http://www.glorybehistory.com/index.htm

In terms of production boats, and trawler yachts as we know them, the
three earliest are:

1958 Romsdal 65 launched for U.S. market by Romsdal Shipbuilders in Norway
1960 Alaskan Motor Cruiser 55 Coho Class launched by Marine
Construction and Design in Seattle
1961 Willard 36 launched by Willard Marine in Costa Mesa, California

Willard was the first production trawler yacht in fiberglass. Hull #1
of the 36 series still is in service today in San Francisco Bay. The
first Alaskan Motor Cruiser, and possibly the first Romsdal, both
wooden boats, are also still in service.

Other notable dates:

1963 Robert Beebe's Passagemaker launched
1963 Spray, precursor of Grand Banks 36, launched by American Marine
1971 Marine Trader 34 Sedan launch
1976 Krogen 42 launched by Kadey-Krogen Yachts
1976 Nordic Tug 26 launched
1989 Nordhavn 46 launched by Pacific Asian Enterprises

Anyone know when the first Mainship was launched? Or the first of any
other make in trawlerdom?

--Georgs

Georgs Kolesnikovs
Circumnavigator
http://www.circumnavigatormagazine.com
Trawler World Online
http://www.trawlerworld.com

If you only list production boats:
Nelson 40, designed by Peter Thornycroft (UK) in 1964
Burkhard Becker

At 04:05 PM 3/24/03 +0100, you wrote:

---========================
Bristol Offshore 42.................1967

.
Captain Al Pilvinis

"M/V Driftwood"--Prairie 47
2630 N.E. 41st Street
Lighthouse Point, Fl 33064-8064
Voice 954-941-2556 Fax 954 788-2666
Email  yourcaptain@earthlink.net
Website http://home.earthlink.net/~yourcaptain

Georgs,

The very first design that the influential naval architect Stephen R. Seaton
ever sold was for my boat, Katahdin (originally named Katahdin II), which
was launched in 1984.  However, by the time my boat was built and launched,
two or three other subsequent Seaton designs had already been built and
launched.  One of those early boats, Namaste, is owned by a frequent
contributor to Trawler World List, Michael Oritt (Awgertoo@aol.com), and he
may have some additional information on the very early Seaton boats.  Most
of the early Seaton boats, but not mine, were collaborative efforts between
Seaton and Chuck Neville who, as you know, is now a very successful naval
achitect with his own company (Charles Neville Associates, Inc.).  I have
been told that when Seaton and Neville were working together, Seaton was
more likely to come up with the basic design, while Neville typically did
more of the detail work.

Leland Robinson
"Katahdin"
42-foot, Steve Seaton designed, raised pilot house trawler
Chattanooga, Tennessee