Century Boat Company - Panama City, FL
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One of the oldest manufacturers of Retro Runabout boats is the Century Boat Company with history dating back to 1926. Long before the age of fiberglass, Century was well renowned for their wooden boat construction and timeless designs. After scraping by the Great Depression the company went on to supply small assault boats to the U.S. military for WWII. It was soon after this period that the company began producing their most well-known model the Resorter. Their stable, sleek boats ranged from 15 to 21 feet and prospered with the mainstream emergence of water skiing in the 1950s. Some of the other popular and long standing models included the Coronado, Raven, and Arabian.
In 1969 Century completed the process of entering into the fiberglass age and ceased production of wooden hull boats. Many of the models remained similarly designed during this period. The 1980s marked a period of transition from old classics to more modern designs the matched the playboy marketing direction the rest of the industry was moving towards. A new plant in Panama City, FL brought about the Century Tournament Skier (CTS), Riviera, Miramar, Fiero, and multiple other models. |
In the spirit of the Retro Runabout, the Century Riviera was a inboard/outboard that came in the 5 and 6-meter options. Produced from 1983 to 1989, these boats came with Mercruiser 4 or 8 cylinder setups and were styled very similarly to their CTS brethren. These boats have been described as the 'sports car' or 'hot rod' boats of their day with high performance and unique styling.
The company was sold to General Marine in 1990 and attempted to reach an investment deal with Yamaha that involved retooling the entire product line to fit outboard motors. Five years later Century would be sold again to Yamaha and merged with Cobia Boats. After 12 years of ownership by Yamaha and a newfound focus on center console fishing boats, Century was in the process of being decommissioned when it was purchased by Allcraft Maine. Today Century is based in Zephyrhills, FL and continues to produce fishing boats.
Learn more about the Century Boat Company history from the Century Boat Club or Grant McLaren's personal website.
The company was sold to General Marine in 1990 and attempted to reach an investment deal with Yamaha that involved retooling the entire product line to fit outboard motors. Five years later Century would be sold again to Yamaha and merged with Cobia Boats. After 12 years of ownership by Yamaha and a newfound focus on center console fishing boats, Century was in the process of being decommissioned when it was purchased by Allcraft Maine. Today Century is based in Zephyrhills, FL and continues to produce fishing boats.
Learn more about the Century Boat Company history from the Century Boat Club or Grant McLaren's personal website.