Bryan Boatbuilding

Harry Bryan was born in 1945 and spent the summers of his childhood sailing, rowing, and fooling around in low-powered outboard boats on the Massachusetts shore. His parents’ annual attempts at getting him a formal education were largely a waste of their resources, according to Harry.

His first significant boatbuilding project was an 8′ hydroplane built in the bedroom—a space that, viewed today, mystifies him as to how that boat fit in such a small space. He recalls that his dad helped him remove the window in preparation for the project’s launching.

Before enlisting in the U.S. Coast Guard, Harry worked for Fairhaven Marine repairing a wooden dragger, then at Concordia Co. building a custom powerboat.

He was married in 1970, then moved to New Brunswick, Canada, and set up the shop where he has built boats of all kinds, from 6’ to 36’. Forty years later, he says he is still trying to educate himself in the mysteries of boatbuilding—and has tried to pass on some of what he’s learned to students at the WoodenBoat School, where he has taught since 1984.