Birth of The Sportfish
In the 1930s and the 1940s, blue marlin and bluefin tuna were abundant in the waters of Cuba, Bimini and Cat Cay just a few miles off the Florida coast, targeted by fishermen such as Ernest Hemingway, and Habana Joe aboard his 1938 40-foot Wheeler named Pilar. Word spread quickly among fishermen around the world about the exciting new sport of big game fishing. Despite the growing popularity of the sport, however, the boats of the day were hardly ideal for the challenges of fighting the prized fish. Most boats utilized in those days were converted cabin cruisers and all were relatively slow and hard to maneuver.
Merritt gained particular notoriety during the 1950s through the 1970s with its 37- and 43-foot (13 m) custom sport fishing boats, which, together with boats like those being built at the same time by Rybovich, gave birth to a new category of fishing yachts and helped fuel the growth of big game sportfishing in the United States and around the world.
Today there is an active community of classic sport fishing boat enthusiasts who continue to restore, maintain and fish these boats around the globe.
Read more about this topic: Merritt Boat & Engine Works
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