A little History

[Bifflefan]

Starcraft

In the beginning....

In 1903 Star Tank Corporation of Goshen, Indiana, a maker of farm feeders and tanks, decided that their process for making tanks would work well for making metal boats. In 1920 the Star Tank and Boat company was making metal boats, and by 1957 they were making 10 models of aluminum and 6 models of galvanized steel boats under the Starcraft Boat Company name.

It is shortly after this time that they started to also make fiberglass boats. No actual date has been determined for which year they began making fiberglass boats as of this writing, but it is suspected to have been around 1958-59. By 1962 Starcraft was making 7 models of fiberglass boats, and continue to make aluminum and fiberglass boats to this day.

Note: Starcraft Marine of Topeka, Indiana is the current maker of Starcraft boats, and shares the Starcraft name with 3 other divisions using the Starcraft name in the recreation industry. The Starcraft name seems to be all that has survived many corporate sales and I have not received any information directly from Starcraft Marine about their fiberglass boat history.

Credit goes to
www.fiberglassics.com

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: A little History

Nice post bifflefan...I thought I'd add some info straight from the starcraft website.
From the Schrock family-

Family First.
Today's Starcraft is a company run by the same family that started it all, back in 1903. Four generations of the Schrock family have dedicated themselves to leading the industry in quality and innovation with fun, versatile boats that are well within reach. There's a sense of pride at Starcraft that you won't find anywhere else. Pride in our boats and pride in backing them up. A commitment made from our family to yours.

History

Think back to 1903 for a moment. Before Americans drove cars, flew airplanes or had televisions. Here in the heartland, Starcraft built its first boat - and decades of innovation were born. Since then, we?ve designed and engineered countless industry-leading improvements to pleasure and fishing craft, all to help families build their own heritage on the water. Whether a Starcraft takes your family cruising, fishing,waterskiing or wakeboarding, one thing?s for sure. At the end of the day, it brings you closer together.

Why Buy A Starcraft?
It's simple, really. Starcraft Marine began manufacturing over 100 years ago and has the experience to bring you the best boats in the industry. Whether you're looking for a serious fishing boat, a sporty runabout, or a luxury pontoon, you'll find it right here - in a Starcraft boat that's versatile, affordable, stylish, and safety-minded.

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: A little History

A litte more history...for the Starcraft fanatics out there

Key Dates:
1903: Star Tank is founded as a farm equipment manufacturer.
1920: Company begins manufacturing fishing boats.
1956: Starcraft is incorporated.
1964: Starcraft introduces a pop-up camper.
1977: Company begins doing van conversions.
1988: Company sells its boat division.
1990: Starcraft files Chapter 11.
1993: Starcraft reemerges as a public company specializing in van conversions.
1998: Tecstar, a joint venture with an engineering firm, is formed.
2001: Starcraft divests its van conversion business to focus on Tecstar's operations.


Company History:
Starcraft Corporation, through its joint-venture ownership interest in Tecstar Inc., is a leading supplier to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) automotive supply market. As a "second-stage manufacturer," Starcraft's Tecstar receives new trucks and sports utility vehicles (SUVs) from General Motors and then outfits them with high-end groupings of bumpers, mirrors, wheels, grills, rocker panels, and other items, before returning the vehicles to GM for sale to the public. Starcraft also supplies after-market parts and accessories to wholesale and retail customers throughout North America. Once known for its fishing boats and then for its van conversions, Starcraft has again regrouped and shed those businesses to focus on the OEM market.

Early History

The forerunner to Starcraft Corporation, the Star Tank Company, was founded in 1903 in Goshen, Indiana, a tiny town near the Michigan border. Its founder, Arthur Schrock, first began the business to manufacture metal feeding and watering tanks for livestock. In the 1920s, however, Schrock broadened his manufacturing operation to include aluminum boats, and the company was renamed Star Tank and Boat. In the mid-1960s, the company diversified yet again, entering the recreational vehicle industry with a line of fold-out campers that were sold under the trade name Starcraft. The Schrock family sold the business to a conglomerate in 1969.

In 1977, the company entered a new and rapidly growing market, when it began customizing vans through a newly formed subsidiary, Starcraft Van Conversions Corporation. To convert a vehicle, the company took incomplete van chassis, obtained directly from major automotive manufacturers, and added a variety of customer-chosen features, which might include anything from curtains, to specially built seating, to coordinating upholstery and interior decor.

 

[Knightgang]

Re: A little History

All very interesting...

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: A little History

A little side note on hull development. A friend of mine who worked for Starcraft in the late 1960s recalled meeting Waltman B. Walters, who worked for Don Aronow with Jim Wynne at Formula Boats in the 1960s. Waltman was freelancing at the time and designed the hull that would be used initially in the V-series hulls in the late 1960s/early 1970s, which evolved into the American series by the mid-early 1970s. The hull design remained in the line-up into the early 1990s with the Medalist series. Different deck configurations, but the same hull the whole way through...

 

[OldSchool55]

Starcraft

In the beginning....

In 1903 Star Tank Corporation of Goshen, Indiana, a maker of farm feeders and tanks, decided that their process for making tanks would work well for making metal boats. In 1920 the Star Tank and Boat company was making metal boats, and by 1957 they were making 10 models of aluminum and 6 models of galvanized steel boats under the Starcraft Boat Company name.

It is shortly after this time that they started to also make fiberglass boats. No actual date has been determined for which year they began making fiberglass boats as of this writing, but it is suspected to have been around 1958-59. By 1962 Starcraft was making 7 models of fiberglass boats, and continue to make aluminum and fiberglass boats to this day.

Note: Starcraft Marine of Topeka, Indiana is the current maker of Starcraft boats, and shares the Starcraft name with 3 other divisions using the Starcraft name in the recreation industry. The Starcraft name seems to be all that has survived many corporate sales and I have not received any information directly from Starcraft Marine about their fiberglass boat history.

Credit goes to
www.fiberglassics.com

Fantastic information. I just joined as a personal fan of my family heirloom StarCraft purchased by my father in 1952 when he was 19. I’m still trying to get more exact information on our model, because it’s an odd duck. I will save that for a new thread