Century Factory, Manistee, Michigan

"At the end of the depression, sales steadily increased. This prosperity of the late '30s was very short lived, as the nation was being drawn into the second world war effort, The Century Boat Company supplied over 3,500 small assault boats. This dedication earned the defense department's Army-Navy "E" flag. "Following this conflict, it was time to resume normal operations. Century revamped the line with new designs that would carry into the late fifties. These post-war craft were made wider and more sleek with a lower freeboard and more powerful engines. There was also emerging a shift in the boating market, the Sea Maids would be gradually supplanted by the highly versatile utility type Resorter models. "The Resorters proved ideal for the average boater. They came in several sizes ranging from 15 to 21 feet. The open hull yielded complete freedom of movement and great adaptability while retaining the grace and beauty Century was known for. Finally with the emergence of water-skiing, the Resorter gained recognition as an ideal ski boat. It was chosen as the official boat for the national and international competitions through the latter half of the '50s. "This ski towing superiority and trend-setting styles, together with newfound racing championships jetted Century to the forefront of buyer awareness. The new models of the '50s, the Coronado, Arabian, Viking, and Palomino incorporated the stunning design trends of the automobile industry from that time. The products of these innovation were painted design schemes, classy hardtop, and fiberglass panels in the structure of the mahogany boat. Many of the models introduced back in the '40s and '50s remain in the Century fold still. "In 1969, Century completed a four-year change to complete fiberglass boat building. The history of this outstanding company has been written by retired vice-president, William Wittig in the book "The Story of the Century." Former company president Al Hegg commissioned Mr. Wittig to write the book in 1983. It covers the company's years of progress from its founding up to the boats of 1985." ************************************* Grant MacLaren comments: One person who influenced the styling of the "50's era was Harley Earl. Here he is a his 1951 LeSabre "concept" car: Century employed ______________________, a follower of Earl to style their boats of the era. Here is a photo stolen from centuryclassicpowerboat.com "At our shop, Fall 2008, one of each of the Seven different Century Coronado styles. From left to right, 1967-hin M6774, 1965-hin M65144, 1963-hin M6393, 1961-hin M6152, 1959-hin M59159, 1958-hin M58246, 1955-hin M55132" ************************************* 1920's Century Boat Company was founded in 1926 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 1928, the company moved to Manistee, Michigan where it stayed for over 60 years. 1930's Century Hurricane held the world's Outboard Speed record of 50.93 miles per hour. By 1937, Century offered 28 models. 1937-37 1940's Century was awarded a government contract to manufacture 3600 boats for WWII. Century received the Army-Navy E Citation for high achievement in the production of materials. 1950's The "Thoroughbred of Boats" slogan was created. The popular Coronado boats were used in two Hollywood films. Century had 343 authorized dealers. 1960's In the early 60's, Century introduced a 45' motor yacht and it's first jet-powered boat. In the late 60's, they began creating fiberglass hulls. 1970's Century began to grow the Parts, Sales and Marketing departments. They also purchased a fleet of tractor-trailers to haul their own product. 1980's The Panama City plant was opened in 1983 where they reside today. The Century Tournament Skier was introduced as well as the Miramar model. 1990's Yamaha Motor Corp. purchased Century in September of 1995. In August of 1995 Century and Cobia Boat Company merged to form C&C Manufacturing. 2000's To meet consumer demand, Century began producing a selection of small and medium-sized center console boats and a new 19-foot Bay Boat. In March of 2005 Century sold Cobia brand moving to One Brand, One Vision. TODAY -- Date? Century offers a full line of saltwater fishing boats from 17' - 32' including walkaround, center console, dual console and inshore models to meet the demand of pleasure and tournament anglers. The Century Boat Company (CEBC) was a leading 20th century American builder of racing boats. The company was founded in 1926 at 333 Blecher Street in Milwaukee, WI by two brothers James and William Welch who had a knack for building wooden plank hulls that were designed for speed. In 1928 the company was moved to Manistee, Michigan where it operated for the next sixty years. In 1930 its Century Hurricane held the world speedboat record of 50.93 miles per hour. By 1937 the company offered 28 models of boats to choose from. The 1940s brought about World War II and the firm received a contract and delivered 3,600 vessels receiving the Army-Navy E Award for excellence in production material. The company had 343 authorized dealers by 1950 and used the slogan "The Thoroughbred of Boats". In the 1960s Century introduced 45' motor yachts and jet-powered boats; in 1967 the last wooden boat rolled out of the Manastee facility in favor of fiberglass. 1970 proved to be the greatest decade for the company; it even had a fleet of white tractor trailers that moved them from Manistee across the country to its dealerships. In 1983 it opened a production facility in Panama City, FL. (Grant therefor notes his boat, a 1981 Century Resorter was probably built in Manastee.) From a facebook exchange in January, 2012: What was first year resorter went fiberglass? Frank Miklos answered -- The 17' hull was FG in 1966 it was called the Fibersport 17'. In 1967 the name of the 17' FG boat was changed to Resorter 17' Fgl, Also in 1967, the 19' Arabian Fgl , 19' Resorter Fgl, Buccaneer & Trident boats were added to the FG Line. The picture of the 67 shown here looks wood? Is that just the paint color? Frank Miklos answered -- It is wood ... both wood and fg were built at that time. Everything looks pretty authentic except for the transom vent color it should be Mahogany Red not white. There may be an extra gauge in the center of the dashboard. Also may only have one line on the feature stripe on the side of the hull... not enough res in the photo ... correct would be two 3/8 parallel lines between the Century and the tag at the rear ... (1967-68) In 1987 the company became part of the Glasstream Group, the owner of many other boat brands. Glasstream encountered hard times due to a new Federal tax on the boating industry, but did achieve one racing success. A. L. Kirland in 1988 would race # A-16 "The Turn of The Century" for Glasstream winning the American Power Boat Association Division Championship in Key West. In October 1989, Glasstream Boats filed for bankruptcy protection and on March 30, 1990 Century became part of GAC Partners (General Marine) under company turnaround expert Richard Genth General Marine was looking for investment partners for Century and agreed to let foreign-owned Yamaha hang outboards on its sterns. In 1995 Century was purchased by Yamaha which had purchased Cobia Boats a few months earlier; the new company was called C&C Boats. In March 2005 Yamaha sold Cobia and stated it would concentrate on "one brand, one vision" concept. In 2007 alone Century sold 1,000 boats and employees thought that things were on a upswing. But on December 1, 2009 Yamaha without warning and just a few weeks before Christmas announced it was dropping its Century line. Century had at this point had 45 dealers in 18 states. In July Yamaha stated Century's assets were up for sale.On April 1 ,2011 Century Customer Service and Warranty functions were moved to Yamaha Headquaters in Kennesaw ,GA. while decommissioning and sale of assets of Century Boat in Panama City, FL. continued. Frequently Asked Questions Dear customers and friends, we've composed this list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) to help address some of the concerns about the December 1, 2009 closure of our Panama City, Fla. facility. As always, we will do everything we can to ensure our customers receive the highest level of care and support. Q: How will I get my Century serviced? A: Please contact the original dealer who sold you your Century Boat. If that is not successful, please call the following number: 1-866-894-1626. Q: Will Century honor my warranty? A: Century will honor all outstanding warranties, pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Century Boats Limited Warranty. Q: Are any of the brand's models going to be available as existing Yamaha Boat Company models? A: There are no plans to produce Century Boats at any of its other existing boat companies. Q: I am buying a used Century, where do I get information about it? A: There is product information available on the Century Boats website, www.centuryboats.com Q: Who do I contact for customer service? A: Please first call the original dealer who sold you your Century boat. If that is not successful, please call the following number for customer service issues: 1-866-894-1626 In 1987 the company became part of the Glasstream Group, the owner of many other boat brands. Glasstream encountered hard times due to a new Federal tax on the boating industry, but did achieve one racing success. A. L. Kirland in 1988 would race # A-16 "The Turn of The Century" for Glasstream winning the American Power Boat Association Division Championship in Key West. In October 1989, Glasstream Boats filed for bankruptcy protection and on March 30, 1990 Century became part of GAC Partners (General Marine) under company turnaround expert Richard Genth. General Marine was looking for investment partners for Century and agreed to let foreign-owned Yamaha hang outboards on its sterns. In 1995 Century was purchased by Yamaha which had purchased Cobia Boats a few months earlier; the new company was called C&C Boats. In March 2005 Yamaha sold Cobia and stated it would concentrate on "one brand, one vision" concept. In 2007, Century sold 1,000 boats and employees thought things were on a upswing. But on December 1, 2009 Yamaha without warning and just a few weeks before Christmas announced it was dropping its Century line. Century had at this point had 45 dealers in 18 states. In July Yamaha stated Century's assets were up for sale. On April 1, 2011 Century Customer Service and Warranty functions were moved to Yamaha Headquarters in Kennesaw, GA. while decommissioning and sale of assets of Century Boat in Panama City, FL. continued. Posted on 16 March 2012: Yamaha Motor Corp. U.S.A. announced today that it sold a majority of the assets of Century Boats and the Century brand to Florida-based Allcraft Marine. The new owners plan to resume production of Century brand boats at their Dade City, Fla. facility. "We are very pleased that the Century brand will live on," Yamaha Marine Group vice president Dean Burnett said in a statement. "Century has a long and rich history in the marine industry and we believe that Allcraft Marine will be a great steward of the Century tradition. The brand's new owners clearly have a passion for producing high-quality products." Allcraft currently builds and markets two fiberglass lines -- Allcraft and Stumpnocker. "We are very excited about restarting production of Century brand boats," Allcraft Marine president Bryan Lucius said in a statement. "Strategically, Century will give us a presence in the larger offshore market. It's been such a solid name for so long. Its brand awareness was extremely appealing to us. We want to get the Century name back to the forefront of everything we do. We are working toward getting the assets moved and getting production started for the 2013 model year, but it is business as usual for our existing lines." The sale of Century to Allcraft included the brand and all remaining molds and equipment. It did not include the former Century production facility in Panama City, Fla. Terms of the deal were not released. Yamaha discontinued Century production in December 2009 to focus on its core operations. It purchased Century in 1995 as part of a strategic plan to grow market share for its outboard motors in the offshore category. Annual sales for Century peaked in 2007 at more than 1,000 boats annually. HOME Ads are selected by Google. Another pretty good web page by Grant MacLaren