The Jersey Skiff is a beach launched boat first appearing around the end of the 19th century. They were first used as fishing boats, to be launched through the surf, sailed to the fishing grounds and then retrieved through the surf. There were two distinct versions, along the Northern Jersey Shore, The Sea Bright, and the Southern Shore, Jersey Skiff. In the early 20th century Jersey Skiffs were employed by early coast guardsmen and lifeguards. The boats had evolved into wreckage and salvage work as well as fishing uses. The primary difference between the two boats is the addition of a board on the side of the Jersey Skiff for slightly greater freeboard. Also the hull is slightly narrower for better rowing. And the transom of Jersey Skiff is more of a wine glass shape which integrates into the

skeg A skeg (or skegg or skag) is a sternward extension of the keel of boats and ships which have a rudder mounted on the centre line. The term also applies to the lowest point on an outboard motor or the outdrive of an inboard/outboard."A small fin f ...

, whereas The Sea Bright transom does not. The skeg can be added as an additional board. The design characteristics of the boat, are a stem that is slightly raked, less than a

Dory A dory is a small, shallow-draft boat, about long. It is usually a lightweight boat with high sides, a flat bottom and sharp bows. It is easy to build because of its simple lines. For centuries, the dory has been used as a traditional fishin ...

and more than a

Whitehall Rowboat A Whitehall rowboat is a style of lapstrake-built rowboat developed in the United States in the 19th century. The basic design is much older and of European ancestry. It strongly resembles a sailing ship's gig or a Thames river wherry used by w ...

. The stern was in a heart or wine glass shape with a rake toward the center of the boat. This allows the boat to be retrieved through the surf bow first. Although it is reported that in rougher conditions the boat is beached stern first. The boats are of fairly shallow draft and have a narrow flat bottom which is useful for sitting on the beach. Although the sides are generally rounded, without a

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 ...

but with a small skeg for tracking. The boats were generally outfitted with a sprit or lug sailing rig and a small

jib A jib is a triangular sail that sets ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel. Its tack is fixed to the bowsprit, to the bows, or to the deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast. Jibs and spinnakers are the two main types of headsail ...

. The mast was generally unstayed. Early fisherman used an

oar An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end. Rowers grasp the oar at the other end. The difference between oars and paddles is that oars are used exclusively for rowing. In rowing the oar is connecte ...

to steer with rather than bring a separate

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally air or water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adve ...

. Modern sailing versions come with a separate rudder. But an oarlock can be mounted on the transom for use with an oar as a steering device.

Prohibition

The boat during

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

was modified into a speedboat but there are still some builders making traditional boats in

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

. With the start of Prohibition Captain William McCoy began to bring rum from Bimini and the Bahamas into south Florida through Government Cut. The

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

soon caught up with him, so they began to bring the illegal goods to just outside the U.S. territorial waters and let smaller boats and other captains such as Habana Joe take the risk of bringing it into shore. By far the biggest Rum Row was in the New York/Philadelphia area off the New Jersey coast, where as many as 60 ships were seen at one time. One of the most notable New Jersey rum runners was Habana Joe, who could be seen at night running into remote areas in Raritan Bay with his flat-bottom

skiff A skiff is any of a variety of essentially unrelated styles of small boats. Traditionally, these are coastal craft or river craft used for leisure, as a utility craft, and for fishing, and have a one-person or small crew. Sailing skiffs have deve ...

for running up on the beach, making his delivery, and speeding away. {{Sailing dinghies and skiffs Dinghies