We are always proud of the accomplishments of company founder Jack Hargrave who designed both pleasure yachts and commercial craft in service all over the world including this aluminum triple decker passenger vessel which was launched 40 years ago in Ontario, Canada. Amanda Smith tells the story of this magnificent ship in an article in the Gananoque Reporter. When she was launched Alcan News described the Thousand Islander as a riverboat with the efficiency of a Boeing 747 and the looks of the Queen Mary! "I remember when this boat first sailed through the Thousand Islands" said Hargrave CEO Mike Joyce, "nobody could believe that a boat this size could cruise at those speeds and not throw a huge wake. You literally had to slow to a crawl when competing boats like the Adonis from the American Boat Lines in Clayton came down the channel." Mr. Joyce's summer cottage is on the Canadian side of the St. Lawrence River and said he sees this boat go by his window every morning!   Mike Joyce Clayton, NY

I am responding to the invitation in the JackHargrave.com website for owners of Hargrave designed boats to write about the experience. Technically, I wasn't an owner. However, my dad bought new a 1972 Hatteras Convertible, hull#338.We had it for five years, until his death.It's hard to know where to start.Suffice it to say that my father and I bonded on that boat. I grew up , became a man, on that boat. We caught our first sailfish by ourselves, on that boat. Traveled from Nantucket to Key Largo, on that boat. Our 53C, NIRVANA, was in a Hatteras TV commercial. Bet you didn't know that there was one! It was September 1973, on Wide World of Sports.It aired twice. It was filmed in Cape May. I remember the line,"For Two-hundred thousand dollars, it's some catch." And it was. So when I stumbled onto your website, I ordered the Hargrave book.It is fantastic. Imagine my pleasure when you describe the 53C as "The Perfect Sportfisherman." I have a passion for boats, but sadly, not the financial means {divorce didn't help, either!}. We haven't owned a boat since. I am an Interventional Cardiologist now. I followed my father's footsteps and became a doctor. If I didn't get into medical school, I was going to be a naval architect. I have always admired the work of Hargrave, in addition to David Martin and Raymond Hunt. One more vignette, before I stop- At the 1974 New York Boat Show, my dad and I visited the Hatteras booth. We met with the director of marketing {I forget his name-it wasn't Phil Fowler, who was sales manager at the time,or Ray Meyers, whom my dad and I both respected a great deal}. In any case, he showed us blueprints of a Hargrave designed 70 foot convertible.I was mesmerized. It obviously was based on the hull of the 70 Motor Yacht. It resembled the JOE BOY [found on page 159 of your book}.I distinctly remember two layouts, one with a larger cockpit.It had an enclosed bridge, too. The boat was never produced, to my knowledge. Michael Innerfield West Nyack, N.Y.

The current owner of Jack Hargrave design No. 6404, now known as EMPRESS, is sharing his adventures through an on-line blog. The blog has a combination of history, restoration, photos and cruising adventures! Here at Hargrave we love seeing Jack's boats out on the water being enjoyed by their owners. Special thanks YACHT EMPRESS for sharing her adventures with all of us! You can read about YACHT EMPRESS' history, restoration, recent trips, and see some photos on the Empress blog here. Empress moored in Avalon Harbor, Catalina