Mercury is a 1946 47' Elco Deluxe Cruiser crafted in Bayonne NJ from African Mahogany in the post-war economy of the US. Commissioned for William O. McKay, a prominent Seattle businessman, Mercury (as originally christened) was put on a railcar and shipped overland to its new home on the Northwestern US coast.

Mercury was used primarily for business entertaining and family use. A social force in the Seattle area, McKay would invite a variety of guests to venture out on the boat, including famous actors and actresses, local and international businessmen and their family and friends.

Kept under cover in a boathouse, Mercury was taken care of by her live aboard Captain Dewey Dennison in the forward Captain's quarters.

Repowered in 1953 with Twin Chrysler Imperial Hemi's, Merc could often be found in the 50's and 60's cutting across the Sound at 20 knots, with the engines running full bore and a wild cocktail cruise being held. In the late 60's and early 70's, Merc hosted stars like John Wayne and Lana Turner, as celebrities took to the water to evade the media and let down their hair a bit. Card games were a consistent pursuit amongst the men, with occasional raftups occurring with Wild Goose, Wayne's famous vessel. Captain Dennison reported to Merc's subsequent owners that Seafair, Seattle's great water festival and city celebration (see http://www.seafair.com/), was first conceived on Mercury when McKay hosted a discussion with local businessmen striving to create a festival that would attract more business/tourists to the area. From 1946 through the early 70's, Merc was in its heyday.

When McKay passed away in the late 60's and his children not interested in continuing boat ownership, Merc was put up on the blocks for sale. For a very short period of time, Merc was owned by one other person who managed to ground out the props almost immediately after purchasing the boat. Intimidated by the boat's power and size, Merc was put up for sale. It is at this point that Merc began his enduring relationship with 3rd owners and caretakers Bill and LaRay Green. A former Coast Guard engineer, Bill and LaRay sold their house and moved aboard Merc in it's Port Angeles boathouse, which turned into their home for the next 30 years. Bill refit the boat for liveaboard cruising with all the comforts of home. The icebox became a refrigerator/freezer. The pump out head received a sanitizer. A generator was installed. The boat was wired for shore power and cable TV. Synchronizers were put on the engines. A radar and GPS were added. Redundant systems were created throughout, and Bill actively cannibalized other Elco's and Imperial Hemi's to create a spare part inventory that let Mercury keep most of its original state. Outmoded 1946 upholstery and carpets were replaced with 1970's funk, and Merc was ready for the next 30 years. Used as a cruising home, the captains quarters forward served as a high school bedroom for their teenage daughter, until Bill and LeRay dropped her at the dock to attend college in Seattle.

In 2002, Bill and LaRay decided to return to dry land. After living aboard her in a boathouse or under cruise for over 30 years, the time had come to pass the legacy of Mercury on to the next generation. They put Mercury in the hands of Phil Rothermel of Adventure Yachts, a friend of their daughter to find a new and suitable home. When Phil first saw Mercury, he couldn't believe the boat's condition. It had clearly been cared for lovingly, and to yacht standards. Phil put the boat on the web with his other listings and hoped for a sale.

For several months there was no activity on Mercury until one morning when Phil received an email inquiry on the yacht from its current owners, Kim and Cliff Farrah. Looking for a classic yacht of Mercury's vintage, the Farrah's were on the East coast and were hesitant to purchase an older yacht with the prospect of shipping a fragile, older hull. Over the next weeks, Phil worked with Cliff and Kim via the web and phone - a strange juxtaposition given the vintage nature of Mercury. Digital photos of every conceivable angle of Merc were sent. Faxes of the original line drawings and recent surveys were offered. Finally after a long conversation between Bill Green and Cliff, Kim decided that they had to make an offer: "I've always dreamed of owning a boat like this, and it seemed like the find of a lifetime". A retired chef, Kim had a vision of a charter business that involved Mercury…

Cliff flew out to inspect the boat and have both a hull and mechanical survey performed on it. Lee Ehrheart, a noted shipwright and surveyor from the Seattle Wooden Boat School performed the hull and system evaluation, while J. Edwards of Platypus marine examined Merc's twin Hemi powerplants. Based on their glowing recommendation and Cliff's immediate love affair with the boat, funds were wired completing the deal. The same day, Cliff flew back to the East Coast, packed Kim and the kids (Cameron (2) and H. Cole (1)) and flew back to cruise the San Juan Islands for a 3 week shakedown.

After an exhausting cross-country trip (as only parents of children in diapers can appreciate), the entourage arrived in Port Angeles for it's first look at Merc. As you'll understand when you see Merc, it was love at first sight. The Green's had left the heat on, provided fresh linens and filled the watertanks. After getting comfortable on board for a day, the cruise began. 2 weeks were spent on the incredible cruising waters of the Northwest - the chance of a lifetime for Merc's new owners. Port Angeles, Port Townsend, Port Ludlow, Seattle, West Sound, Orca Island, and the San Juan Islands were the gracious hosts for the shakedown cruise. The galley worked out beautifully for Kim and Shawn, pillaging Seattle's marketplace for fresh produce, meats and fishes while Cliff and the kids stocked Merc's liquor cabinet and wine locker to the gills with every kind of beverage. The crowning meal on the boat was a 5 course feast with 3 wines and an incredible cognac, surrounded by the unspoiled beauty of Echo Bay (where the above picture was taken). Mercury showed its stuff as it confronted 30+ knot wind and steep chop to bring the group back to civilization safely and in relative comfort. Merc passed the true test of having 2 adults and 2 children in diapers on board for 2 weeks and at the end of it, no one wanted to get off.

Mercury then began the jurney home to it's East Coast roots on the back of an 18 wheeler. Significantly damaged due to the poor efforts of its driver, Merc arrived the worse for wear in New Hampshire. Then the refit began. The entire interior was stripped down to bare wood, upholstry and carpeting removed, a new head was installed, an AC/heating unit was added, trim tabs were installed and a new tender was purchased. The hull was sanded, faired and painted, the engines tuned and Merc was ready to go on its next adventure...transiting the entire Eastern seaboard via the ICW.

On Columbus Day, 2003 Merc departed Portsmouth NH with a crew of 5. Cliff, his father-in-law Mac McChesney and John a friend and former submariner planned to ride through Annapolis where they would be met by Kim, the kids and her mother Audrey. Al and Lou Farrah, Cliff's father and brother, joined in the symbolic first day's voyage. The trip was incredible, stopping in Newport, Annapolis, Savannah, Charlestown, St. Augustine, Tampa and ultimately the family's winter home in Destin, FL. Merc peformed like the amazing vessel it is, completing the 2500 mile journey for the final stages of its refit.

After a winterlong repowering, Mercury was back in New England waters for the 2006 summer season. The hemi's have been replaced with twin Yanmar 315's, the hull reinforced and in some areas replaced. The galley has been restored complete with original flooring and a period stove. Systems have continued their upgrade, and a new generator powers the onboard amenities of the boat. New canvas has been applied to all decking, the topsides wooded and revarnished and re-painted.