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Hanging Out In The Yard Snead Island Boatworks A trip to Snead Island Boatworks is a passage through time. Sure, there's a minor detour through civilization a la Palmetto, and more and more homes are cropping up on the island perched on the banks of the Manatee River. But follow the path to the end and you will be well rewarded. For there, in a sandy waterfront clearing framed by stately pines is Snead Island Boatworks, which has graced this spot for almost a century.
In Of Yachts & Men, first published in 1947, famed boat designer Billy Atkins recalls the Islamorada. "Built by Snead Island Boatworks of Bradenton, Florida, she is a remarkable boat and has the ability to drive along at full speed in water that is only 14 inches deep. You can recommend Snead Island Boatwork to anyone who wants a boat built, whether it is to be a high priced yacht or a cheaper-built cabin cruiser." Present owners Jim and Maribel Alderman, and son Gary, continue to build upon this proud heritage. Jim's father started at Snead Island in the 1930s and eventually bought out the boatyard. Jim Sr. grew up in Tarpon Springs working at his father's saw mill. Pinellas County's Alderman Road is named for the patriarch.
Alderman is one of several local supporters behind a new, county-sponsored maritime museum in nearby Cortez. Slated to open in 2004, the museum will honor the legacy of the area's boat-builders and commercial fishing community, while offering visitors a rare glimpse into the art and craft of boat building. For more information, call Snead Island Boatworks at 941-722-2400.
The Shakespeare of Salt Creek William Shakespeare is alive and well, and living on St. Petersburg's Salt Creek. But this "Bill" prefers 'messing about in boats' to spinning poetry. From behind a cluttered desk, Shakespeare peers out over a twin engine "palm pilot" - two over-stuffed rolodexes chock full of clients, suppliers and friends cultivated over the years. He purchased Embree Marine in 1979, but the business dates back to 1947 when mechanic Bert Embree first opened the boatyard just south of downtown St. Petersburg. While times have changed and wooden boats have given way to fiberglass, Embree's renown as a top quality boatyard remains intact. The full-service boatyard renovates and repairs power and sail boats, commissions new boats, and outfits yachts for ocean expeditions. One client had Shakespeare outfit their 47-foot Bristol for a seven-year voyage around the world. Along the way, the couple faxed Shakespeare a list of needed parts, and he in turn air shipped the goods to Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and other exotic ports of call. "It's all about quality and service," says Shakespeare, who estimates that there are only about six or seven full service yards on Tampa Bay. Visitors are welcome by day, but night-time visitors beware. An errant 10-foot-long alligator, thought to have washed in from nearby Lake Maggiore during a storm, got his comeuppance after snatching one of three Rottweilers who guard the yard after dark. Shakespeare baited and hooked the instigator, then kept him aloft and alive - in a makeshift lift - until animal control officials arrived on the scene two days later. His massive head now hangs on the office wall above a simple brass plaque that reads: "Don't get mad, get even." For more information, contact Embree Marine at 727-896-0671. |
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Started in 1907 by the Pillsbury family (no relation to the food company), the boatworks originally catered to northerners who stored their wooden yachts here in a freshwater basin over the summer. Purchased and renamed Snead Island Boatworks in 1936, the yard's bread-and-butter business was boat and barge repair, but it also built small wooden yachts on order.
Today, the full-service yard repairs and renovates about 40 boats a month, including sail, power and fishing boats up to 65 feet long. Jim's own boat, the 40-foot Islander, was built by Grady Thompson in 1956 for the Tampa Bay Pilots Association.