Shortly after World War II, a gentleman by the name of H. Tracy Balcom enlisted Glen E. Furness, the naval architect at Hutchinson Boat Works in Alexandria Bay, NY, to design a boat for him. It was to be a custom power boat for Balcom to
use for fishing and recreation in the Thousand Islands area of
the St. Lawrence.
Furness went to work and drew up plans for a 25-ft. 6-in.
utility with a 7-ft. 8-in. beam, double-planked bottom and lap
strake sides that blended beautifully into a full barrel-stern –
an extremely rare combination. An ice-box and several
lockers were provided for stowage of fish and fishing gear,
and an unusual convertible canvas top on wood bows was
designed to collapse forward into a concealed compartment
located just behind the windshield. Power was provided by a
6-125 Gray Marine engine.
The design was designated #142, and as far as is known, only
one boat was ever built from that design. That build was
executed in 1949 by Grew Boats, Ltd. of Pentanguishene,
ONT, Canada as hull #3412. The boat’s name, Royal Amber,
was found during restoration, barely visible on the transom.
The boat spent the next 25 years in the Thousand Islands and
during that time it was regularly maintained by Hutchinson.
In 1974, the boat was acquired by a Paul Schumacher of
Rochester, NY with the intention of restoring it. He used the
boat very little, and never got around to its
restoration. Three years later he put it in storage
at Sill’s Marina on Sodus Bay, and in 1981, he
gave it to FLC member Stew Sill, owner of the
marina, as compensation for storage!
In 1998, Stew sold the marina, built himself a
shop at his home on the west side of the bay,
moved the boat from storage into the shop and
undertook its restoration as a major retirement
project. Stew’s objectives were to restore the boat
to the highest standards while retaining
originality, but using modern technologies for
increased reliability, safety and performance.
That project began in 2000, and over the next six
years he worked steadily on the boat doing a first-
class, bottom-up restoration. The keel, ten web
frames and 35 intermediate frames were replaced
-- all in white oak. A new3M 5200 bottom was
installed, but surprisingly, the ½” mahogany
topsides were still in excellent condition. They were saved
and refastened with silicon bronze rivets. Decks are all
original mahogany and were reinstalled with 3M 5200 seams.
Through the years, the boat
retained all of its
original hardware (most
of which was
replated), including an
Iva-Lite and a deck-
mounted Perko siren. The
original Stewart-
Warner instrument panel
was retained, but all new
S-W “wing” gauges were
installed.
In a nod to
practicality and
reliability over
authenticity, the boat’s
Gray Marine engine was
replaced with a new 300hp
Crusader which Stew found on e-Bay at a bargain price. The
power train was fleshed out with 1:1 Velvet Drive
transmission, and new stainless shaft, prop and strut bearing.
And as part of the concession to modern power, the boat’s
original floor-mounted shift lever was replaced with a Morse
single-lever control. The new engine also required a twelve-
volt electrical system including bilge blower, bilge pump and
new wiring throughout.
Research into the source of
the name Royal Amber has
uncovered the fact that H.
Tracy Balcom, Jr, the
original owner, was
President and CEO of the
Wiedemann Brewery, in
Newport, KY from 1938
until it merged in 1967 with
Heileman Brewery. For
many years before and
during the time that Mr.
Balcom was CEO,
Wiedemann was prominent
in the Newport community
and their flagship beer was
named “Royal Amber.”
To round out the restoration, new “tuck & roll” upholstery was
installed and battleship linoleum covered the cockpit soles.
The result was “A sweet running boat,” according to Stew.
“That new Crusader really made a perfect engine for this
boat!” Stew now had himself what he called the Ultimate
Picnic Boat for casual use and pleasant afternoons on Sodus
Bay and Lake Ontario.
But that’s not the end of the story. Enter Ed Leroux!
For 30 years, Ed Leroux had been active in boating, mostly
sailing. Much of that time was spent on Sodus Bay, but
through reassignments and relocations with Xerox, he sailed in
San Francisco, Southern California and Long Island Sound.
As children and grandchildren became sailors (or at least
enjoyed the water), it became clear that he and his wife, Anne,
needed a water-side cottage to handle the crew. In 1996, they
bought their summer place on Le Roy Island which gave them
the opportunity to have more space for the kids than just the
sailboat at Sodus Bay Yacht Club where they had been and
still are members. It also gave Ed a place for smaller wooden
boats -- an interest that he had held for some time.
His first wooden boat was (and still is) a 12-ft. Penn Yan Swift
replica built in 1997 by Victory Boats of Victory, NY. “As a
kid, it was the first boat I remember my dad owning on the St.
Lawrence.” Ed’s second woode
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