Hughes Boat Works

Hughes Boat Works (also known as Hughes Boatworks Inc.) was a pioneering Canadian fiberglass sailboat manufacturer, founded in 1963 by brothers Howard and Peter Hughes in Willowdale, Ontario (near Toronto), initially producing small dinghies before relocating to Scarborough in 1965 and later to Centralia, Ontario, where it operated from an abandoned air force base. Specializing in trailerable cruisers and racer-cruisers, the company collaborated extensively with renowned designers like Sparkman & Stephens (S&S) and William H. Tripp Jr., building high-quality, seaworthy boats that emphasized performance and affordability, often sold as complete vessels or DIY kits to appeal to budget-conscious sailors during the 1960s–1980s fiberglass boom. Under Howard Hughes' leadership, it grew to become Canada's largest sailboat producer, constructing over 3,500 hulls across multiple lines until economic challenges, ownership shifts, and a devastating 1991 factory fire in Orangeville, Ontario, ended operations permanently.