MOLLY B. is a 28′ cruising cat boat with a cat yawl rig.  She was designed and built by C.C. Hanley in 1927, and was one of his last design/ builds.  Her rig is quite conservative as compared with some of the extreme racing cats with which Hanley earned his reputation.  Hanley was a very prolific designer in his time, even producing an America’s Cup contender that was essentially an enormous cat boat. N. G Herreshoff reportedly once said of Hanley “he was the toughest nut I had to crack.”

MOLLY B. is a special boat with a rich history and lots of character.  One of her many interesting traits is the reverse rake in the stem that was signature of many of C.C Hanley’s designs. MOLLY B.’s restoration took place in stages beginning in 2009, and she launched, fully restored, in the summer of 2016. Benjamin River remains her sailing home, so keep a look out for her on Eggemoggin Reach each summer. She’s hard to miss!

(You can see some more photos of this restoration work here or at our Facebook page.)

In the Press

Tom Jackson wrote about MOLLY B. in the “Around the Yards” section of the Sept/Oct 2016 issue of WoodenBoat.

Stephen Rappaport’s article in the Ellsworth American about the relaunch of MOLLY B. is entitled Historic old catboat gets new cast of characters.

Articles

Ellery Brown discusses the complete restoration of MOLLY B. and similar “basket cases” that are eminently worthy of restoration in The Case for the “Basket Case” in Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors 145.