The nine-year-old national newsletter “BONE YARD BOATS” has a new owner/publisher. The mission of the newsletter is to help save forgotten, abandoned, but worthy boats before they disappear forever.

Since the newsletter was established in 1996, a number of boats that otherwise would have met a chain saw have been saved. Most recently was a 1940s, 38 ft. Wheeler, left abandoned at a shipyard dock; a 1906, 58 ft. Skipjack, the “ETHEL LEWIS”; and a 1958 Cheoy Lee, 30 ft. sailboat; all valued under $10,000. Articles have appeared in Woodenboat, Classic Boating, USA Today, Vintage Boating Life, among others, and the April 2005 issue of Soundings.

After hearing from over a dozen interested people from Maine to Alabama, I finally selected 42-year-old David F. Irving from Charleston, SC where the family lives in the nautical historic area. My selection was based on his previous publishing experience, a genuine reverence for boats and the nautical life plus being computer knowledgeable; this combination should improve the overall structure of the publication and raise it to a new level of interest.

David was originally from Marblehead, MA and, in 2004, he and his 13-year-old son, Dillon, cruised from Massachusetts to South Carolina where the family settled. David and his wife, Nancy, and their two children, Hannah, age 16, and Dillon are all nautically oriented and enjoy their 31 ft. Sea Ray named “CODGIE.” They are now in the process of preserving and restoring a house in Charleston. David is in the computer consulting business.

David is working on the true “BONE YARD BOATS” website and will make an announcement as soon as it is available. I will complete the Summer issue, then gather material for the Fall issue, then send all to David to print and mail. David asked me to continue to contribute articles and other items of interest.

My hope and wishes are that this needed niche newsletter will continue and be instrumental in saving worthy boats for years to come. May David have as much fun as I did, along with success.

David F. Irving
BONE YARD BOATS
P.O. Box 831, Charleston, SC 29402
Email: davidirving@boneyardboats.com

Click Here for a sample Bone Yard Boats Newsletter.

Click Here to visit the Bone Yard Boats website.