Construction and Restoration of the Sloop AMANDA

In 1934, Francis Belknap and Frank Paine of Boston designed a practical but striking 31-ft cruising sloop for Mooney of Medford. MOONBEAM (design #365) was built and launched by Frank Jesse of Plymouth, as noted in the November 1934 issue of "The Rudder" magazine.

This lovely one-off design was re-discovered by builder Dave Corcoran and Kurt Hasselbalch, Curator of the MIT Hart Nautical Collections, while searching for a unique and suitable cruising yacht to fit the criteria of the owners, Nancy and David Moncton, who have enjoyed many years of sailing in the Canadian Maritimes, particularly on the Bras D'Or Lakes of Cape Breton. Corcoran built the hull with cedar planking on white oak frames with a mahogany backbone at Arundel, Maine in the fall of 2006, but tragically passed away in early 2007.

E.M. Crosby Boatworks completed this unique New England classic yacht in the spring of 2008. AMANDA has an electric motor to regenerate power while under sail.