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BONITO in 2007
Bonito
BONITO in 2007
BONITO in 2007
Private Collection

Bonito

Vessel numberHV000263
Vessel Registration NumberJZ 965N
Date1925
DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 9.6 m x 8.84 m x 2.59 m x 1.07 m, 6.08 tonnes (31.5 ft x 29 ft x 8.5 ft x 3.5 ft, 6.18 tons)
DescriptionBONITO is 9.6 m (31.5 ft) long, carvel-planked, with a substantial raised foredeck and an elegant overhanging canoe stern. The craft was launched in the middle of 1925 and was the subject of two reports in Australian Motor Boat and Yachting Monthly magazine. The July 1925 issue described it as a ' fine, wholesome type of seagoing cruiser worth inspection', with 'splendid roomy cabin accommodation'. It was fitted with a 22 kW (30 hp) Thorneycroft engine and the superstructure was teak.

The original owner was Col. Alfred Spain, an architect and army officer who rose to prominence in Sydney as a director on various boards including Howard Smith, Sydney Ferries and Taronga Zoo.

Spain removed the sailing rig in 1932 and added a wheelhouse to convert it to a motor launch. It has remained in this configuration through a succession of owners, with only minor changes. Spain sold the craft in 1947, and in 1952 BONITO was sold again to Robert Massie, a well known yachtsman, businessman and decorated veteran of World War I. The current owner has returned BONITO as closely as possible to the 1932 wheelhouse arrangement.
SignificanceBONITO is a motor launch built in NSW in the mid-1920s. It was designed and built in 1925 as an auxiliary ketch by the prominent Sydney boatbuilding firm of WM Ford. Converted to a motor launch in 1932 it is structurally almost completely original, including the 1930s internal layout. BONITO had some well known Sydney figures as owners.
METUNG in London on its circumnavigation
JC Bull
1956
LADY FREDA being readied for towing, and showing the elegant canoe stern profile.
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1905
KRAIT restored for the 75th Anniversary event on 26th September 2018 at the ANMM wharves.
c 1934
SAO on Sydney Harbour , a recent black and white image which shows the well proportioned gaff c…
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1905
MISTRAL II under full sail
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1922
SEA SCOUT on the Great Barrier Reef in 2004, acting as a research and dive vessel.
Walter Reeks
1923
SY ENA at the ANMM March 2014
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1900
HURRICA V undergoing sailing trials in November 2008
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1924
WIRRAMINNA in 2010
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1907
ATHENE, possibly  in the early 1930s
WM Ford Boatbuilders
1905
Janet Iles
White Boatbuilders
1914
MAY QUEEN, June 2012
Alexander Lawson
1867