About Us                             

VISIONARY CREATIVE VOLUNTEERS: A SPECIAL MOMENT

ACBS President Jeff Stebbins notes in his "President's Message" in the 2004 Directory that it was just a little over twenty-nine years ago that THE ANTIQUE & CLASSIC BOAT SOCIETY was established and muses that our founders hardly could imagine it as it thrives today with such robust membership growth and as such a vital and diverse information resource.

On the happy occasion and signal honor of The Lake Hopatcong Chapter hosting the Summer Quarterly Meeting, it may be appropriate to provide some of the Chapter's rich history in the earliest days of the ACBS. The photo above will serve well as a centerpiece for that purpose, as all five were vitally involved in the creation of the ACBS; and four of the five were Lake Hopatcong based. I hasten add that others from Lake Hopatcong were very involved as well and an accurate account will identify them shortly.

It was a special moment when these five visionaries in the history of the ACBS were together at a Lake Hopatcong Chapter Annual Dinner some years ago. It is sad that only one, Skip Shipman, survives. They were recognized that evening for their exceptional contributions to the ACBS...contributions that merit some iteration... and contributions for which we of the Lake Hopatcong Chapter take full measure of vicarious pride. All five played major roles in the earliest meetings both at Lake Hopatcong and Lake George that led to the creation of an organization dedicated to the preservation of antique boats ... an organization that thrives and grows today as President Stebbins notes.

It was October 2,1974 when Drayton Mook hosted a meeting at his Lake Hopatcong home for the purpose of forming a club to preserve and enjoy antique boats. Present at that meeting were Dr. Lloyd Craver, Frank Scanlon, Skip Shipman, Wayne Mocksfield, Bucky Mook and Drayton.

Almost simultaneously, similar initiatives were being explored at Lake George. Whatever the lines of communication may have been, it became clear early on to both the Lake George and the Lake Hopatcong groups that there were shared perceptions of the need to preserve, enjoy and celebrate antique boats. With that shared interest, vision and willingness to volunteer to drive the process, on November 2.1974 a meeting of the two groups took place at Lake George. From Lake Hopatcong at that meeting were Drayton Mook, Tom Wiss, Skip Shipman and Wayne Mocksfield.

It was from those embryonic meetings that THE ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC BOAT SOCIETY was to be born, with the date of the actual date of founding being January 25,1975.

Of the five pictured, two were Officers on the original ACBS Board of Directors, Drayton Mook and Bill Smith, both Vice-Presidents. Bill Smith was a founder and his widow, Barbara is a Charter Member, as are Bucky Mook and Wayne Mocksfield. Drayton Mook and Tom Wiss were Charter Members as well. Though Frank Scanlon and Skip Shipman were neither Founders nor Charter Members, both were vitally involved in those early meetings; and no one had more robust involvement or commitment than they did.

With the primary focus of this article being the substantial and vital role played by people from Lake Hopatcong in the creation of ACBS, it is appropriate to state the obvious...that the product of those early meetings was a collective effort of volunteers from both Lake George and the Lake Hopatcong groups...perhaps the "dedicated creative volunteers" that President Stebbins identifies as one of the key factors contributing to the continued success of ACBS.

Your editor is confident that the reader will agree that we of The Antique & Classic Boat Society owe a hearty "Thank You...Job Well Done," to the early visionaries from both Lake George and Lake Hopatcong who saw a need to preserve, celebrate and enjoy antique boats and had the unwavering commitment to pursue their vision, laying the firm foundation of the organization that, as President Stebbins notes, flourishes today.

Written for "SCUTTLEBUTT" by Bob Rice 2004