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Snyder's Shipyard Ltd. is a boatbuilding company located in Dayspring, Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia. The company is known to have built and repaired over 220 boats and vessels, most notable being the Bluenose II schooner and Theodore Too.
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History
The shipyard was initially started under the name of Leary's, with records dating back to 1871, a time when establishing owner Stephen Leary and sons Melbourne and Maurice Leary were building large-scale ships with keels up to 74 ft. in length, using iron work. The shipyard was purchased by Reginald "Teddy" Snyder in 1944, who designed and built vessels as well as parts of the shipyard facilities. After working 53 years as a shipwright and 10 years spent as the owner of Snyder's, Snyder retired from the business in 1987, passing ownership to his son Phillip.
Details of the shipyard
The first permanent boat-building shed to be built was constructed in 1969 and measuring 100 feet by 40 feet. Before the erection of this building vessels were constructed outside. In 1992, a second building was constructed to build its first 67-foot vessel indoors. The third building constructed by Acadian Construction of Bridgewater brings a total of 10,000 square-feet of working space to the shipyard. In 1988, many boatyards were reducing their amount of productivity and number of staff. Snyder's underwent expansion of their facilities with the construction a third new 3000-square-foot building and increased their staff to 35 full-time employees in order to build larger vessels to meet current demands. Cost of this expansion estimated $135,000. Snyder's received a sum of $32,125 from the Atlantic Opportunities Agency's Industrial and Regional Development Program (IRDP) contributed to expansion costs.