Herreshoff #194502es 25-Man Life Raft

"Mr. C. W. Haffenreffer, Vice President and General Manager of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, Bristol, Rhode Island, has announced the appointment of Mr. H. D. Thompson to the staff of that company in the capacity of Superintendent of the Plastics Research, Development, and Production Division. Prior to joining the Herreshoff staff, Mr. Thompson was connected with the Virginia Lincoln Corporation of Marion, Virginia, as an engineer of low-pressure laminates. Mr. Thompson is a native of Nashville, Tennessee, studied engineering at Tulsa, Oklahoma, and has had a broad experience in the experimenting and development of molding veneers in the aviation field.
Internationally known as the designer and builder of the finest pleasure and racing yachts, Herreshoff has recently completed large Government Contracts for highspeed Motor Torpedo Boats (PT's), Aircraft Rescue Boats, Minesweepers, Coastal Patrols and Transports.
At present, Herreshoff, under contract with the War Department, is devoting its efforts to the research, engineering, and design of life saving equipment, which it proposes to mold with low-pressure plastic laminates. A 25-man deck-type Life Float, designed by Herreshoff, embodies many new features intended to increase its value and give added comforts and assistance to distressed personnel in the event of emergency. It is anticipated that this Life Float will be utilized by all branches of the Armed Services and Maritime Commission.
Mr Haffenreffer further stated that the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company is experimenting with the use of low-pressure molded plastics in constructing high-quality pleasure craft, as well as in many other ways unrelated to the marine field.
The company is presently installing the most up-to-date laminating equipment available for the manufacture of items from this process, and is planning when these facilities are in operation to undertake laminating contracts for other manufacturers, as well as produce items of its own design." (Source: Anon. "H. D. Thompson Named Supt. Of Plastics Research." Bristol Phoenix, June 12, 1945, p. 4.)

"An ironic twist to the transition of the Burnside St. yard from Herreshoff to Pearson hands is the effort made by the older firm to produce plastic boats. At the close of the war Herreshoff worked on plastics, but the idea did not catch hold.
A careful look next to the marine railway at the yard at low tide reveals the remnants of a plastic life raft built at the yard. It sits about 12 feet away from a nest of Tritons. A decade and a half of production was lost between the new and old plastic, but the boat-building industry has jumped the gap quite successfully. Bristol is recovering one of its finest jewels. ..." (Source: Anon. "Waterfront Review" Bristol Phoenix, February 2, 1960, p. 4.)

"... One of the very first attempts at making plastic boats in this country, if not in the world, was made at Bristol in 1944. It happened at the close of World War II, at the Herreshoff Mfg Co plant, after war contracts on PTs, aircraft rescue boats and and minesweepers ran out.
Lowell Smith, who was employed at the Herreshoff plant at the time, remembers these early trials. The firm settled on making life rafts [#194502es] and dinghies [#194501es], but unfortunately the effort was ahead of the market, and it came to an end when the plant closed down in 1945. A few of the dinghies are still being used around the bay, and a lone life raft rests below high tide line at the former Herreshoff dock on the Bristol waterfront. ..." (Source: Anon. "Pioneer Efforts in Fiberglass Boats Took Place in Bristol County." Bristol Phoenix, 1st Annual Boating Guide and Waterfront Review, March 29, 1963, p. 12.)