Hope CollegeDigital Commons @ Hope College

The Joint Archives Quarterly College Publications

4-1-2011

The Joint Archives Quarterly, Volume 21.01: Spring2011Geoffrey D. ReynoldsHope College

Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.hope.edu/jaquarterlyPart of the Archival Science Commons

This Newsletter is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at Digital Commons @ Hope College. It has been accepted forinclusion in The Joint Archives Quarterly by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Hope College. For more information, please contactdigitalcommons@hope.edu.

Recommended CitationRepository citation: Reynolds, Geoffrey D., "The Joint Archives Quarterly, Volume 21.01: Spring 2011" (2011). The Joint ArchivesQuarterly. Paper 74.http://digitalcommons.hope.edu/jaquarterly/74Published in: Joint Archives Quarterly, Volume 21, Issue 1, Spring April 1, 2011. Copyright © 2011 Hope College, Holland, Michigan.

111!tTORl' RESEARCII CE~TER

1\ l'\\' '"ur~

The Joint Archives

Volume 21 Number I Spring 2011

MADE OF STEELThe History ofthe Roamer Boat Company

by Geoffrey D. Reynolds

1

In 1949, Linn produceda 36-foot line patrolboat for the City ofChicago for use in theirdrainage canal.

He also published hisfirst brochure, which featured a 32·foot cabin cruiser, aswell as house boats, fishing boats and work boats. Thecabin cruisers ranged from 32-40 feel, and cosls rangedfrom S9, 950 to SI5,800. You could even purchase a"handyman's special" model that provided you with ahull and the rest was up to you lO complete at a muchlower cost. During the early years, inlerior finishing wasoften completed by the buyer, even on the slock boatssold as complete. Other models included expresscruisers, deckhouse cruisers, and double cabin cruisers in33, 36, 38, 4], 42, and 48-foot lengths. Many of these

(continued on page 2)

the Campbell Boat Company facility, since a factory sitehad not yet been procured, according to city directoriesand boating magazine stories. By the fall of 1947, Linnbad produced another all·welded steel 30·footer called

"Roamer," which waschristened by his wife,Frances, at theCampbell site. Thisboat was produced for

_ the Linn family by theCampbell BoatCompany, according tonewspaper reports, andfeatured a mahoganywood cabin, much likethe boat pictured on theback cover.I~--"

Linn built his first Roamer cruiser, a steel·hulled 32-foolexpress cruiser, in 1946. This mOSl likely took place at

The Roamer BoatCompany was Connallyfounded in Holland,Michigan, in 1946, byRobert R. Linn (1910­1994), son of Allenand Grace Linn ofGrand Rapids,Michigan. Linn came to Holland from Grand Rapids asa young man with his wife, Frances H., and apprenticedwith Ken Campbell of the Campbell Boat Company fortwo years. The couple and their two sons, Robert, Jr. andDavid, lived at 1024 South Shore Drive, very near theCampbell Boat Company. The 1947 Holland CityDirectory listed Linn as a boat manufacturer at the SouthShore Drive address.

When it comes (0 pleasure boats, few people think ofpurchasing a boat made of steel. Thoughts of a boatmade from this manufactured material include weight,cost and corrosion. But for post World War TwoAmerican consumersand governmentagencies, the desire forsteel boats was drivenby their strength,endurance andreliability. Hollandwas home to one ofthose boat buildingftrmS in the fonn of theRoamer BoatCompany.

IFrom the Director I thick for the hull sides and 3/16" for the bottom, whichwould give its owners carefree confidence in doubtfulwaters.

To celebrate the arrival of wannweather, I have penned an articleabout boating and the Roamer BoatCompany's role in making pleasurecraft and military boats out of steel.This company, while only existing forless than a decade, was instrumentalin forming an entire division of themighty Chris-Craft Corporation once

it was purchased by them in 1955. This company andmany more will be spotlighted in a story about Hollandboat builders that will be appearing in the July/August2011 issue of Michigan History magazine.

Also included in this issue is our annual list of financialdonors. Thank you to those listed for your support,which goes a long way toward helping us continue ourwork of gathering, preserving and providing access to thearchival materials in our care.

Geoffrey D. Reynolds

Made olSteel (continuedfrom page 1)

cruisers were designed by naval architect A. M. Deeringof Chicago, Illinois. Commercial craft includedpassenger boats built for Olson Boat Corporation ofWisconsin Dells, Wisconsin; Roseland Amusement Park,Rochester, New York; and Wilderness Outfitters, Ely,Minnesota.

Linn took his sales pitch to boats shows around theUnited States and took on the competition in this market,which had existed since 1939, and included Safti-Craft,Steel Craft and Higgins.

After selling and building his large, steel-hulled boats,Linn launched most of them at Jesiek's Boatyard (nowE1dean Shipyard), where the new owner took delivery.Very few were delivered over land and thus the phrase"They'll Go Anywhere" came to be used in salesliterature.

Roamer crniser at Jesiek's, ca. 1949

Richard Cole o/Orono Boat Works and Robert Linnat the Chicago Boot Show, 1950

By May 1950, a factory building, located at 961Washington Avenue, was being used. Linn promoted hissteel-hulled boats as the easy, low maintenance boat ofyour dreams, utilizing the special, copper alloy steel asnon-corrosive. And, after all, it was made of steel, 118"

The year 1951 brought big changes to the Roamer BoatCompany, its labor force and profit sheet. That July, itwas announced that Roamer had contracted with the U.S.Navy to produce ten John Alden designed 45-foot steeltugs, powered by diesel, worth over half a milliondollars, and deliver between December 1951 and June1952. These boats were used by the AnnyTransportation Corps. To fill the contract, Linn beganadding more men to his staff, many of which wereveterans eager to work and looking for somethingdifferent in the way of work. One of these men wasGeorge Kuiper. Kuiper visited the plant one afternoonafter quitting his auto mechanic job, and started the nextday building boats, earning $1.10 per hour. There,Kuiper was put to work grinding the steel frames of theboats that would support the huge sheets of steel thatmade up the hull of the tugboats. Once the boat wasalmost completed, Kuiper was promoted to the man incharge of plumbing and wiring the boat. The small staffhad to be flexible to make sure production continued at asteady pace. Other employees, like Bernard Meiste,worked as the parts control foreman, Michael Potterserved as foreman, Vern Lampen ran the engine

.

STEEL BUILT

~ROOfEO

2

Robert Linn. ca. 1950

department, putting in huge Buda brand engines andpropeller shafts, and Pete Riemersma was in charge of alarge team that welded steel sheets that made up thehulls. Once the boats were completed, each was movedslowly down 32nd Street, the men using poles to guidetelephone lines over the boats as they passed under, toJesiek's Boatyard, where they were eased into the waterand moored. Once in the water, Kuiper would test theboat for the Navy inspectors and officials from theBureau of Ships. If they passed-and all did-Kuiperand other crew would sail the boats to New Orleans viaLake Michigan, Chicago, and the Mississippi River overa few months time.

u.s. Army Corps ofEngineers tug boatsrafted together on Mississippi River, 1952

In 1952, a second contract, worth almost a milliondollars, to build an additional twenty-one tugs wasawarded, and with it came an expansion to theWashington Avenue plant and a new warehouse in ParkTownship. Some of the men, like Kuiper, would workall day and then work some more at the emerging marinaconstructing the boat hoists. Ultimately, 31 of the tugswere built and 120 persons were involved in the project.The last three tugs steamed south in September 1954.

With the addition of the warehouse in Park Township in1954 came plans for Roamer Haven and eventually BayHaven Marina in May 1955, now part of the Eldeanfamily holdings. This construction project was anindication that Linn was ready to get oUl of the boatbuilding business and that changes were in the wind forRoamer Boat Company.

In the early months of 1955, representatives from theChris-Craft Corporation, Owen Smith and Harry Coil,toured Linn's boat factory and inquired aboul selling hiscompany to Chris-Craft. In March 1955, Robert Linnsold Roamer Boat Company to the Chris-CraftCorporation for $117,000 and ended an era. Chris-CraftCorporation owners wanted to enter the welded steel

3

r--:;;iiiii.;;-' boat business and Roamer was anatural choice seeing that it wasin the same town as one of theirlargest plants and bad provenitself in the marketplace forseveral years. After sellingRoamer to Chris-Craft, Linn andhis sons operated Bay HavenMarina at 1862 Ottawa BeachRoad in Holland for many years.Son David passed away in 1988;father Robert in 1994: and sonRobert in 1996.

Roamer became Roamer Steel Boats Division of Chris­Craft Corporation in 1956. Chris-Craft added on to theoriginal Washington Avenue plant soon after thepurchase, and introduced dramatic design changes to tbeRoamer line. Michael Potter remained the foreman ofthe new division under George Smith and RussFredericks. Fredericks was also in charge of the Chris­Craft factory farther to the west. Kuiper also worked forthe company, before rejoining Robert Linn at Bay Havento help develop that business. He would eventuallyreturn to Roamer and work for many more years as amarine inspector, participating in the sea trials for thenew models of Roamer yachts.

Chris-Craft built a new plant on Lakewood Boulevard inHolland in May 1956 and employed close to 350workers. An aluminum boat was first included in the linein 1962 and eventually the Roamer Divisionconcentrated on large aluminum motor yachts.Production was transferred to Florida in 1975 and endedcompletely m 1979. Chris-Craft Corporationreintroduced the fiberglass version of the Roamer model,for a short time, and ended production, again, in 2010.

Roamer Division ofChris-Craft Corporationplant on Lakewood Blvd., 1962

Non-ProfitOrganization

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

Hope College

IIISTORY RESEARCH CENTERHope C.,llc." • WC'lcrn Th ,Io~,c~l S"m, .. "

Contact us at (616) 395-7798· Fax (616) 395-7197· E-mail: archivcs(ahopc.cdu· www.jointarchivcs.org

36-foot Roamer on Lake Macatawa, March 1950-$11,250

Mr. Curtiss 8. AllenEd and Ann Piet AndersonMrs. J. Anne De Witt AppletonMrs. Barbara ArcherMr. Charles Aschbrenner and

Mr. Chris T. SpencerMr. Dan BaldwinMr. Arthur J. S. BielfeltMr. and Mrs. John A. 810mDr. and Mrs. Vern BoersmaMr. Melvin S. BoonstraMs. Pauline BoschMrs. Jean BraceBradford CompanyMr. and Mrs. Judson T. BradfordMr. and Mrs. Gordon M. BrewerDonald and Sally BrinksDr. and Mrs. George Brown, Jr.Dr. and Mrs. Donald J. BrugginkDr. and Mrs. Elton J. BruinsMr. Harvey J. ButerMs. Laurie CoolidgeMr. Gerald CooperMs. Laura F. CoxMr. Robert S. CurtisRon and Jessie DalmanMr. and Mrs. Robert L. De BruinMr. and Mrs. Roger DeGraafMs. Karel DeichMrs. Doris DcYcllcDr. Danicl A. Dc VriesMr. and Mrs. Jack De WittDr. and Mrs. Lamont DirkseMs. Ruth DonaldsonMrs. Winnifred M. DreeuwsMr. Chester DykemaMrs. Dorothy M. DykemaMr. and Mrs. Harvey J. DykemaGreg and Amanda DykhouseMr. and Mrs. Robert J. DykstraMr. and Mrs. Marshall ElzingaJames and Rosemarie EvenhuisMr. and Mrs. Harold S. GazanMr. and Mrs. Michael G. GriffinDr. Nonnan C. GysbersMr. and Mrs. Louis Hallaey II

Joint Archives of HollandHonor Roll of Donors 2011

Ms. Elizabeth HarveyRev. and Mrs. Eugene HeidemanDr. and Mrs. I. John HesselinkMr. and Mrs. James HinkampRev. and Mrs. J. Samuel HofmanMr. and Mrs. Terry HofmeyerMrs. )enifer S. HolmanMr. and Mrs. Lester HooglandDr. and Mrs. John HoogstrnMs. Phyllis M. I-luffMr. and Mrs. Vincent L. IannelliDouglas and Amy JacksonMr. and Mrs. Nonnan JapingaDrs. Eugene and Elaine JekelMr. Ken KaterbergMrs. Lois Jesiek KayesDr. and Mrs. Roger D. KempersDr. and Mrs. Earl Wm. KennedyMr. and Mrs. Martin KlaverMr. Michael KollenMr. Frank KraaiMr. and Mrs. Eldon R. KramerMr. Robert D. KroezeMiss Lois M. KronemeyerMs. Ruth E. KronemeyerDr. Margriet LacyDr. and Mrs. Gordon D. LamanMr. Ronald Page LemmenRev. and Mrs. James C. LOlltRev. Dr. and Mrs. Gary J. LoomanMr. and Mrs. Michael LozonDr. and Mrs. Robert C. MahaneyMr. Gerald MeyerMr. and Mrs. Hannes Meyers, Jr.Abe and Elin Veensehoten MoerlandMr. and Mrs. Dale MoesMr. and Mrs. Robert MolenhouseMs. Sandy MooneyMs. Mary MouwMr. and Mrs. Ronald A. MulderMrs. Carolyn NienhuisMr. David NykerkMr. and Mrs. Bill ParrMr. and Mrs. Daniel PaulMs. Deanna PayneMr. and Mrs. Joel Ploegstra

Ms. Helen R. PoolMs. Mary RaperMr. and Mrs. Jerrald H. RedekerMr. and Mrs. Craig RichMr. Wally RooksMs. G. SchalekampDr. James SchmiechenMr. and Mrs. Richard SlighSlikkers FoundationMrs. Evelyn SmalleganMr. and Mrs. Jack W. SmithMr. and Mrs. Bob SnowRev. and Mrs. Henry A. StegengaMrs. Lois Tysse StromDr. Robert P. SwierengaMr. and Mrs. Peter SytsmaMr. and Mrs. William SytsmaMrs. Leona TerpsmaRev. and Mrs. Peter J. TheuneMs. Barbara TimmerMr. and Mrs. Paul M. TrapMs. Swanette TriemMr. and Mrs. Myron D. Van A.rkMr. Hugo M. Van den 0001Dr. and Mrs. Stanley Vander AardeMrs. Mary Vander LindeMr. and Mrs. Randy Vande WaterMr. William G. Van DykeDr. F. Phillip Van EylRev. and Mrs. Gerard Van BeestMr. Julius Van OssMr. and Mrs. Gerald Van WyngardenMrs. Dorothy VossMr. Frank WagenaarMr. and Dr. Larry and Deb WagenaarDr. and Mrs. Douglas J. WalvoordMr. Bob WassinkDr. and Mrs. Clark WeersingMr. and Mrs. Wiley C. WilsonMr. and Mrs. Roger WinkelsMr. and Mrs. Henry I. WitteMr. and Mrs. Tom WoltersDr. and Mrs. George D. ZuidemaMr. David Zwart

Albertus c. Van RaalteLeader lk Liaison

An International Conference Celebrating the Bicentennial ofThe Reverend Albertus C. Van Raalte, DO (1811-2011),

Founder of Holland, Michigan

24"'25 October 2011On the campus ofHope College, Holland, Michigan

Dutch and American scholars discuss Van Raalte:• Pastor/ecclesiasticalleader• Community leader/social reformer• His failed colony in Virginia• His family dynamics• His enduring legacy

For more information, visit http://www.hope.edu/vri/