Marie in the Thorofare

Classic motor yacht, Marie caught my eye from the second story work spot on the Fox Island Thorofare and I dashed downstairs to grab a photo as she glided through the small boat traffic. The angle of the photo does not do justice to her 41.73m. Always interested in classic boat backgrounds, here is what was gleaned from a web search.

Known until recently as Acania, the classic motor yacht Marie was built in 1930 in New York by Consolidated Shipbuilding Corporation (Consolidated Yachts today) to a design by John H. Wells. Built for silent film actress Constance Bennett, the yacht spent her first decade cruising the east coast of the States until 1941 when she was commissioned by the US Navy for service during WW II as a submarine echo finder. Skip ahead a few decades, and in 1995 a new owner rescued the vessel from a scrap yard in Miami and decided to completely refit the yacht while keeping as much of her history and original features intact and also re-christened her to once again sail under the Acania name. After a recent refit and change of ownership, the vessel now operates under the name Marie and is finished in a traditional navy blue hull colour.