Antique wood boat by "Holmes" in Houston

[Tempest]

I saw a 15'-16' wood boat in a neighbors garage a few doors down form my folks house and asked what they knew about it. The grandson of the original owner is now in care of the property and all he knows is it was used one or two seasons and parked. I found no I.D. plates anywhere (that i could see) inside or out. The only ID was the "HOLMES" boat logo (in green paint) on the aft. (Port & Starboard) It was bought new sometime in the "Fifty's". The two Johnson o/b's (35 hp each) (silver in color) look like they could have been original with the boat. Due to limited access I have not been able to view the boat again. (will bring flashlight) Does any one know anything about "Holmes" boats? I.D. placements? History? Johnson o/b id locations? :confused:

[rbgarr]

What state or country are you in? It might help a bit to know since there have been so many local and regional builders over the decades.

[MiddleAgesMan]

Houston is in Texas which is in the US of A. :)

[rbgarr]

LOL... I didn't catch that in the title. :D

If you think the mfr was in Texas you might try the library for old mfr indexes (Thomas's?) from the fifties.

[kc8pql]

Having been born in 1950, I take exception to the use of the word antique in the thread title.:rolleyes:

[paladin]

You're just a kid in short pants.......

[Captain Intrepid]

Houston is in Texas which is in the US of A. :)

Well, to be fair, there's also Houstons in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, British Columbia and Renfrewshire. :p

[Paul Fitzgerald]

There was a Holmes making wooden boats in Sydney, Australia at that time, maybe Bigfella can help with more information.

[The Bigfella]

Yep, WL Holmes and Holmes Bros.... builders of the boat in my avatar. It would help to see a photo of the builders plate.

I've not heard of them building smaller boats though. Mainly cruisers, ferries and yachts.

edit... I'd put WM instead of WL

[Lew Barrett]

Yep, WM Holmes and Holmes Bros.... builders of the boat in my avatar. It would help to see a photo of the builders plate.

I've not heard of them building smaller boats though. Mainly cruisers, ferries and yachts.

Same goes here in respect to Vic Franck, Grandy and the like; You don't give them much thought until you start to see the shore boats these guys turned out during slow times, and as accessories for their major commissions. They're no much celebrated, but there are fleets of them in this area. Every yacht needs a tender, after all. Some research might (maybe) turn up their little nippers.

[The Bigfella]

.... and right you are Lew.... they are listed here as having made speedboats... scroll down...

http://www.boatregister.net/SydneyBuilders.htm

[The Bigfella]

This is their Lavender Bay operation in Sydney. Their Berrys Bay operation is a mile or so up-harbour.

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff112/igatenby/iansecond/z6.jpg

[Tempest]

The "logo" on the back of the boat reads "HOLMES Houston Texas". The original owner is not capible of much, he does not live in that house anymore and the grandson is living in the Houston area. He is the only family member in the area and is trying to get his grandfathers place cleaned up and sorted out when he has time. The boat is in Galveston county, texas. I will try and post pictures when in can be there when the grandson is there. Since the boat has not been used in roughly fifty years and sitting in a garage it has been turned into a shelf, bench, drawer, ect. The boat looks to be in good shape and since there is alot of stuff in, on and around it I had a difficult time trying to see much of it. Is there a standard place for I.D. plates? I am trying to get prepared to look only where I have to on the boat. Three car garage, fifty plus years of storing things in it, no lights, you figure it out. Just a small miracle to even get as close to touch the boat.

[erster]

This shows that there is indeed an active boat operation.


HOLMES BOAT WORKS is in the Boat Building and Repairing industry in HOUSTON, TX. This company currently has approximately 1 to 5 employees and annual sales of Under $500,000.

4404 GARROW ST
HOUSTON, TX 77011
http://start.cortera.com/company/research/k2r1msn9k/holmes-boat-works/

[Tempest]

Thanks for the info. I saw that link a few weeks ago. It's a dead end. Not the same Holmes as in the fifty's.

[AndreasJordahlRhude]

There is NO standard place for a builders tag or serial number plate on pre-1972 boats. And, there was No requirement until November 1972 to have any type of ID on boats. So do not be surprised if you do not find anything.

There are two HOLMES boats listed in the membership directory of the Antique & Classic Boat Society www.acbs.org (http://www.acbs.org). One is a 1955 Cuddy 16 footer and the other is a 1969 tunnel hull. No idea if they are the sames Holmes.

Andreas