Dickerson owners enjoying their annual rendezvous.
It all began in 1946 when Bill Dickerson built his first boat in his back yard in Church Creek, Maryland’s Eastern Shore. These boats were the star of that era. One person told us he bought his 34 ft Simplissima Ketch from Dickerson on a handshake, and sailed it to Fire Island, New York. Seeing what a great boat it was, several of his friends ordered more boats from Dickerson.
The Dickerson Owners Association (DOA) began with a small group of sailors meeting at their homes on the Bay in the mid 1960’s. The first recorded Rendezvous was in June 1968 at the Dickerson Boatbuilders plant on La Trappe Creek, Trappe, Maryland where strip-planked, wooden 35, and 40 ft ketches were being built. Later, the fiberglass Dickerson 36, 37, 41, and 50’s were built until the firm went out of business in 1987. (see Dickerson Boatbuilders: A Historical Review, Kindle E Book and http://www.dickersonowners.org )
So now, the Dickerson Organization is celebrating its 46th Anniversary. Who are these people that even after owning 3 or 4 fiberglass boats would buy a wooden Dickerson or one with a lot of wood to be varnished? Ferenc Mate’ in his world recognized book, “The Worlds Best Sailboats“, described Dickerson owners best when he said: “The Dickerson boats, like the work boats around them, were designed and built simply and well, and because of that combination, have gathered a following almost religiously second on this continent to the zealots of Henry Hinckley.”
The typical Dickerson owner described by Dickerson salesman, and now yacht dealer in Oxford, Jim Karr, is an “experienced sailor. His Dickerson is not his first boat, he does most of the maintenance, appreciates the fine joinery, and finishes the bright work year after year”.
The annual Dickerson Rendezvous is traditionally held on Father’s Day weekend in June, features a reception on Friday, and a race with awards dinner on Saturday. In the early days, everyone gathered at the Dickerson Boatbuilder sheds on La Trappe Creek for the reception, and then on Saturday, after the race, had a delightful cookout at one of the member’s waterfront homes. After the company went out of business in 1987, we moved to different areas on the Eastern Shore for the Rendezvous.
In recent years, we have been able to hold the Dickerson Rendezvous at the Tred Avon Yacht Club in Oxford. The Rendezvous now features a parade of historic
