Thomas Winer Malone Explained

Thomas Winer Malone
Birth Date:1 November 1929
Birth Place:Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Bahamas
Other Names:Winer Malone
Known For:Prominent Bahamian boat builder, having built more than 200 Abaco dinghies
Nationality:Bahamian
Children:3

Thomas Winer Malone (November 1, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was a Bahamian wooden boat builder who single-handedly crafted over 200 dinghies in his lifetime.[1] Ranging, his boats were hewn from memory without the use of power tools, jigs, or templates. Malone used wood from trees he cut himself on the Abaco Islands.[2] Malone's Abaco dinghy is open-hulled and single-masted with a small "banana board" supporting the top of the sail.[3] Before the advent of outboard motors in the 1950s, Bahamian dinghies often provided the sole means of transportation for fishermen, farmers, and visiting families, as well as the occasional smuggler (or rum runner). If the wind died, a boat could be propelled with a single, long sculling oar off the transom. When fiberglass hulls finally supplanted wood construction in the 1960s, Malone's Abaco dinghies remained in strong demand, primarily from American sailing enthusiasts.

Additional references

Notes and References

  1. Book: Collins, E. . 2005. Winer Malone and the Abaco Dinghy. Maple City, Michigan. Good Harbor Publications.
  2. Malone. Thomas Winer. [Cover Story]. Wooden Boat Magazine. 135. March–April 1997. Brooklin, Maine.
  3. Book: Dodge, S . 2005. Abaco: The History of an Out Island and Its Cays. 3rd . New Smyrna Beach, Florida. White Sound Press . 0-932265-76-6.