Nationality Bahamian Spouse Joanne Malone Name Thomas Malone | Children 3 Other names Winer Malone | |
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Born November 1, 1929 (age 94) ( 1929-11-01 ) Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Bahamas Known for Prominent Bahamian boat builder, having built more than 200 Abaco dinghies. | ||
Winer Malone (born November 1, 1929), the last of a great generation of Bahamian wooden boat builders, single-handedly crafted over 200 Abaco dinghies in his lifetime. Ranging from 10–14 feet, his boats were hewn from memory without the use of power tools, jigs or templates, and from trees he cut himself on the Abaco Islands.
Malone's Abaco dinghy is open-hulled and single-masted with a small "banana board" supporting the top of the sail. "Scooting joyfully under sail across harbors and bights, Abaco dinghies are distinctive at a distance. Even at anchor they display a corky energy. Their design is as traditionally perfect for their intended use as is the Native American canoe."
Before the advent of outboard motors in the 1950s, Bahamian dinghies often provided the sole means of transportation for fishermen, farmers, and visiting families, as well as the occasional smuggler and rum-runner. If the wind died, a boat could be propelled with a single, long sculling oar off the transom. When fiberglass hulls finally supplanted wood construction in the 1960s, Malone's Abaco dinghies remained in strong demand, primarily from American sailing enthusiasts.