The skiff on the cover of
The Summer Before the Storm is a Disappearing Propeller Boat,
also known as a Dispro, or more affectionately, “Dippy”. It’s basically a motorized
rowboat with a cleverly designed propeller that works in very shallow water. If
the protective skeg hits an obstruction, like a log or a sandbar, the prop automatically retracts
into the housing – handy when you want to beach the boat for a picnic or a
swim.
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| 18 men in a Dippy |
The Dippy was the brainchild of Wm. J. Johnson, a boat
builder in Port Carling, Muskoka, in 1914. These sturdy wooden boats were roomy,
as you can see in the ad above, apparently unsinkable, so easy to use that a
child could drive one, and relatively inexpensive, starting at $300. By the early
1920s, the Disappearing Propeller Boat Company was the largest manufacturer of motorboats
in Canada.
People still putt-putt around the lakes in these lovely
vintage craft - at about 6 to 9.5 mph – as you can see in this video. Of course
some of my characters own Dippies.
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