Quissett Harbor Boatyard Post-Fire Update

A schooner is launched from the Quissett Harbor Boatyard’s marine railway prior to the fire that gutted the storage building on the right in early January. Photo courtesy David Martin

BoatingLocal recently checked in with Weatherly Dorris, owner of Quissett Harbor Boatyard, which suffered a fire that destroyed 1 of the facility’s 2 main storage/work buildings on January 4, 2012.

Three boats were also lost in the fire, including a wooden Herreshoff 12 ½, a Luders 27 and a 1950s-era plywood Cruisealong runabout. Fortunately, the fire was extinguished before reaching a part of the building that held a fleet of 15 Herreshoff 12 ½’s. These boats were unharmed.

Dorris, whose family has operated the boatyard in the southeast corner of Buzzards Bay for the past 54 years, told us that she intends to rebuild on the same footprint as the old 2-story building, which had been in use since the late 1800s. “We will be open for business this spring,” Dorris stated, adding that launching and rigging of boats kept at the yard will not be affected by the blaze.

A boatyard has existed on the site since the 1880s, and Quissett Harbor still maintains an operational marine railway. The small, homey marina offers several transient moorings and slips, and is considered a hidden gem among cruisers traveling through Woods Hole and Buzzards Bay.

Quissett Harbor Boatyard Storage Building Gutted in Blaze

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