A Cape Islander, a style of fishing boat mostly used for lobster fishing, is an inshore motor

fishing boat A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial, artisanal and recreational fishing. The total number of fishing vessels in the world in 2016 was ...

found across

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (french: provinces de l'Atlantique), is the region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec. The four provinces are New Brunswick, Newfoundlan ...

having a single

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

ed flat bottom at the

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...

and more rounded towards the bow. The Cape Island style boat is famous for its large step up to the bow. They are known for being good "sea" boats, and riding the swells well. It originated on

Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia Cape Sable Island, locally referred to as Cape Island, is a small Canadian island at the southernmost point of the Nova Scotia peninsula. It is sometimes confused with Sable Island. Historically, the Argyle, Nova Scotia region was known as Cape S ...

about 1905. (Various online sources cite years 1905, 1906, and 1907.) Two families claim credit for its invention. The design is most commonly credited to Ephraim Atkinson of

Clark's Harbour, Nova Scotia Clark's Harbour is a town on Cape Sable Island in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada, located in the Municipality of the District of Barrington in Shelburne County. The main industry is lobster fishing. Owing to this as well as the town's history ...

. The Atkinson family builders have continued building pleasure and commercial boats to this day. The other claim to the boat's design is an accomplished boat-builder from Clark's Harbour, William A. Kenney, who is said to have constructed the first Cape Islander entirely from wood in 1905. The Cape Sable and Pubnico area of South West Nova Scotia remain major centres of Cape Islander construction for the Atlantic region using newer materials, larger sizes (notably an increased beam) and more advanced equipment. Beginning as an open motor-powered boat, Cape Islanders gradually evolved a covered wheelhouse called the "cuddy" which grew in size to provide bunks and a small galley space forward of the wheelhouse in the raised bow area. Dingwall in 2010

This boat can now be seen in use all over coastal Nova Scotia, North America, and the world. It is closely related to the

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

lobster boat. Cape Island style fishing boats are also sometimes referred to as "Novi" boats. Slight regional variations include flared bow lines for Cape Islanders in the choppy

Northumberland Strait The Northumberland Strait (French: ''détroit de Northumberland'') is a strait in the southern part of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in eastern Canada. The strait is formed by Prince Edward Island and the gulf's eastern, southern, and western sho ...

area and smaller sizes in the Eastern Shore area.Nova Scotia Motorized Fishing Boats
by David A. Walker

References

* ''Small Wooden Boats of Atlantic Canada'', by Wayne Barrett and David A. Walker (Nimbus Books, Halifax, 1990)

External links

Nova Scotia Motorized Fishing Boats
by David A. Walker
Clark's Harbour article at The Canadian Encyclopedia
{{fisheries and fishing Types of fishing vessels Water transport in Nova Scotia