SBSC Boat Builders Information

Visit Our Sponsors

Builder Information

Builder's Name:	Henry Watkins
Builder's Location:	Bellport, NY
Builder's Biographical Information:	Hen(ry) V. Watkins (1864 – 1920), a carpenter in Bellport, NY. Watkins had a shop on Bell Street at the turn of the century. He built scooters in either his shop or his sisters, Hattie’s (C.K. Shaw), barn on Jersey Avenue and Old Country Road. Frank Kramer, the Sail Master in Bellport during both the summer and winter months, commissioned Hen(ry) Watkins to build 10 Ice Scooters for winter residents of Wyandotte Hotel to be used as a one-design class. About eight or ten boats were built, one or two a year between 1903 and 1910. At least 14 boats are known to have been built by Watkins. The price at that time was $110.oo.