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Chris Smith built his first wooden boat in 1874 at the age of 13. Years later, he built a duck hunting boat. His friends liked the way he built them, and they asked him to build them one. This was technically the start of the boat company. He soon began to build more boats and joined his brother Hank
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After the war, Chris-Craft introduced a new lineup of civilian pleasure boats in time for the massive
American consumer expansion of the 1950s. That decade marked the height of company prestige, and the Chris-Craft brand name became virtually synonymous with pleasure boating. The company offered 159
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The company was acquired by
Shields & Company's NAFI Corporation in 1960, but continued to operate independently. Chris-Craft Industries sold its boat division to Murray Industries in 1981, while retaining the Chris-Craft trademark and licensed it to Murray.
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boat by 1955. The company added a metal boat division in 1957, designated as the Roamer Steel Boats
Division (RSBD). This was founded upon its purchase of the Roamer Boat Company, and the boats became known as Chris Craft Roamers.
416:, and Chris-Craft sales suffered. The company introduced a line of low-priced powerboats to stay solvent. By 1935, a 15.5' utility boat sold for as little as US$ 406 ($ 9,023 in 2023 dollars ). During
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In 1910, the brothers joined with other partners to form the Smith Ryan Boat
Company. The firm's name was changed in 1922 to Chris Smith & Sons Boat Company, then to Chris-Craft in 1924. The
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How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a
Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda
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359:-area company became well known for its sleek racing boats in the 1910s and 1920s. Chris-Craft sold high-end powerboats to wealthy patrons such as
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when it became one of the first mass-producers of civilian pleasure boats. Formerly, most powerboats had been hand-built. The company began
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was an
American boat manufacturer founded by Christopher Columbus Smith (1861–1939). The company was sold by the Smith family in 1960 to
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This article is about the original company founded in the late 19th century. For the former manufacturing and broadcasting company, see
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How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a
Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States
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was largely confined to the wealthy. Its innovative advertising campaign promised a piece of "the good life" to the growing
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Chris Crafts were considered to be among the finest available, popular with famous customers such as
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different models, and it was the sales leader in many categories of small civilian powerboats.
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were supplied by both Ford and
Chrysler, and by the Hercules Engine Company in later models.
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acquired the boat company in 1989, then went into bankruptcy in 2000 and was purchased by
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In the late 1920s, Chris-Craft extended its market into the
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an affordable 22' runabout. At the time, the domain of
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23:. For the current company established in 2000, see
643:"Everything Old Is New Again: The New Chris Craft"
723:Defunct manufacturing companies based in Michigan
649:. Force 12 Media, LLC. 2007-01-07. Archived from
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459:, they were easy to operate by weekend boaters.
136:Chris Smith & Sons Boat Company (1922–1924)
703:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1962
352:in 1881 to begin producing boats full-time.
688:Manufacturing companies established in 1910
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618:"Chris-Craft Industries – Company History"
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718:American companies disestablished in 1962
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532:Location of Chris-Craft Michigan factory
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60:of all important aspects of the article.
597:"Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–"
258:Smith brothers and partners (1910–1922)
713:American companies established in 1910
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56:Please consider expanding the lead to
595:Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
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393:In 1927, the company introduced the
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462:Chris-Craft manufactured its first
255:Smith family (1874–1910, 1922–1960)
133:Smith Ryan Boat Company (1910–1922)
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708:1962 disestablishments in Michigan
543:History of Hercules Engine Company
323:in 1962. The current successor is
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48:may be too short to adequately
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58:provide an accessible overview
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698:1960 mergers and acquisitions
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378:production at their plant in
281:Murray Industries (1981–1989)
589:American Antiquarian Society
569:American Antiquarian Society
319:, which changed its name to
172:; 150 years ago
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473:Outboard Marine Corporation
306:Roamer Steel Boats Division
285:Outboard Marine Corporation
198:; 24 years ago
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188:Christopher Columbus Smith
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16:Historic boat manufacturer
412:robbed many Americans of
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95:42.6132735°N 82.5453808°W
365:William Randolph Hearst
325:Chris-Craft Corporation
223:Chris-Craft Corporation
139:Chris-Craft (1924–2000)
100:42.6132735; -82.5453808
25:Chris-Craft Corporation
728:Chris-Craft Industries
683:American boat builders
451:and featuring liberal
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321:Chris-Craft Industries
276:Chris-Craft Industries
121:1928 Chris-Craft Cadet
21:Chris-Craft Industries
508:"Chris-Craft History"
403:American middle class
347:Twin-cockpit runabout
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622:Funding Universe.com
414:discretionary income
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512:www.chriscraft.com
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437:Katharine Hepburn
380:Algonac, Michigan
313:Chris-Craft Boats
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110:Chris-Craft Boats
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418:World War II
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372:middle class
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229:Headquarters
147:Company type
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45:lead section
647:Boat Digest
573:1700–1799:
553:1634–1699:
517:16 November
433:Dean Martin
287:(1989–2000)
278:(1960–1981)
98: /
677:Categories
657:2009-07-20
487:References
464:fiberglass
399:speedboats
361:Henry Ford
86:82°32′43″W
83:42°36′48″N
422:U.S. Navy
382:, on the
302:Divisions
291:Winnebago
219:Successor
50:summarize
627:21 March
578:(1992).
558:(1997).
449:mahogany
241:Products
157:Industry
127:Formerly
388:Engines
357:Detroit
331:History
214:Defunct
201: (
193:Defunct
185:Founder
175: (
167:Founded
151:Private
443:, and
395:Cadet,
267:Parent
249:Owners
585:(PDF)
565:(PDF)
457:brass
274:NAFI/
244:Boats
629:2011
604:2024
519:2017
455:and
453:teak
408:The
363:and
211:Fate
203:2000
196:2000
177:1874
170:1874
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495:^
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