Vandestadt and McGruer Limited
TypePrivately held company
IndustryBoat building
Founded1965
FounderFraser McGruer and Hubert Vandestadt
Defunct1988
FateOut of business
Headquarters
Owen Sound, Ontario
,
Canada
ProductsSailboats
Number of employees
48

Vandestadt and McGruer Limited (sometimes styled as Vandestadt & McGruer) was a Canadian boat builder based in Owen Sound, Ontario. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of fibreglass sailboats.[1]

The company was founded by Fraser McGruer and Hubert Vandestadt in 1965. Vandestadt was the main designer for the company and also the nephew of naval architect Ericus Gerhardus van de Stadt, a pioneer of 20th century sailboat design.[1][2][3]

History

The former Vandestadt and McGruer plant, in 2020
Siren 17

The company imported the trailer sailers built by the MacGregor Yacht Corporation from the United States into Canada and also produced its own line of boats.[1]

The first design produced was the 13.33 ft (4.06 m) Spindrift 13, a small day sailer dinghy in 1965, with 800 boats built. This was followed by the smaller 11.08 ft (3.38 m) Skunk 11 in 1968, of which 1200 were delivered. The next boat was the even smaller 9.58 ft (2.92 m) Shrimp in 1972, with 340 boats completed.[1][4][5][6][7]

The first keelboat produced was the Siren 17 pocket cruiser, introduced in 1974. With 3,200 boats built, it became one of the most successful Canadian sailboat designs.[1][7][8][9][10]

The company moved into bigger boats with the Sirius series of keelboats, which commenced with the Sirius 20 in 1976, a design that evolved into the Sirius 21 in 1977 and the Sirius 22 in the early 1980s. The Sirius 28 was introduced in 1982 and finally the Sirius 26 1987.[1]

The Sirius 21 became the first North American production sailboat to use both ballast and positive flotation. Closed-cell foam was injected into some of the boat's compartments and also in between the inner and outer hull to accomplish this, a feature that added cost, but improved safety.[11]

The largest design produced, the Sirius 28 had 120 examples completed between 1982 and 1987.[12][13]

The company declared bankruptcy in April 1988.[14]

Boats

Sirius 28
Skunk 11

Summary of boats built by Vandestadt and McGruer Limited:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Vandestadt and McGruer Ltd. (CAN)". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  2. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Hubert Vandestadt". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 20 January 2019. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  3. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "E. G. Van de Stadt". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  4. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Spindrift 13 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  5. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Skunk 11 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  6. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Shrimp sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 7 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  7. 1 2 Sherwood, Richard M.: A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition, pages 4-5, 8-9, 86-87. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. ISBN 0-395-65239-1
  8. ↑ Browning, Randy (2020). "Siren 17 sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  9. ↑ McGoldrick, Michael (2018). "Siren 17". Sail Quest. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
  10. ↑ InterVisionSoft LLC (2017). "Sailboat Specifications for Siren 17". Sailing Joy. Archived from the original on 20 January 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  11. ↑ Browning, Randy (2020). "Sirius 21/22 sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  12. ↑ Browning, Randy (2020). "Sirius 28 sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  13. ↑ InterVisionSoft LLC (2017). "Sailboat Specifications for Sirius 28". Sailing Joy. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  14. ↑ Ellen van Wageningen (21 July 1988). "Bankruptcy sale stirs mixed feelings". The Sun Times. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  15. ↑ John Weight (24 February 1987). "Vandestadt and McGruer's Sirius 26 a hit". The Sun Times (Owen Sound). p. 46. Retrieved 24 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
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