Bird of Passage

[gordonchaplin]

I'm trying to locate Bird of Passage, a 49 foot Sparkman Stevens motorsailor built for Percy Chubb in the seventies. any info would be greatly appreciated.

[skipmac]

Not sure if it is the same boat but there is one sailboat with that name documented by USCG in the US. Built of fiberglass in 1974 by Scheel Yachts. Documented length is only 44.2' but could be difference between LOA and LOD?

The documented owner is

HOBO CO.
3511 SILVERSIDE ROAD SUITE 105
WILMINGTON, DE 19810

Also shows that this is the original name of the vessel since new.

Hope this helps.

[Blue Stocking]

Gordon,

If you find her, please post a photo.
Boy!!- a 70's S&S, from the age of art on the water.

[gordonchaplin]

Many thanks, Skipmac. I believe this is the boat, but the address is just a mail drop. The mystery continues. Gordon

[skipmac]

Lot's of boat owners set up companies in Delaware for tax advantages so I would not call this just a mail drop. Why don't you try sending a letter to the registered address to see if you get a reply.

If you are really desperate to track down the boat you can try to access the names of the corporate officers for Hobo which should lead you to the owners.

Skip

[skipmac]

The company listed at this address is one that seems to specialize in setting up Delaware corporations for out of state clients. You might try contacting them to see if they can help.


DELAWARE REGISTRY, LTD
3511 Silverside Road
Suite 105
Wilmington, DE 19810
New Castle County Ph: 800/321-2677
or 302/477-9800
Fax: 302/477-9811
e-mail: corp@delreg.com
Website: http://www.delreg.com

[gordonchaplin]

Hi Skipmac--called that number, which referred me to the state registration office. The state people said the registration for Bird of Passage had expired in 1990, and as far as they knew it hadn't been renewed in any other state. As I say, the mystery continues.

[skipmac]

Hi Gordon,

I think you misunderstand the situation. There are two ways to "register" a boat, state and federal. A boat showing ownership in Delaware does not have to have a Delaware state registration. Not finding a recent state registration renewal does not mean anything.

Bird of Passage has a federal registration called Documentation which is done with the US Coast Guard. The US government web site shows that the federal documentation with the USCG for Bird of Passage was renewed Jan 6 2010, expiring Jan 6 2011.

A vessel that is USCG documented is not required to have any state registration. Some states may also require that you pay a state registration fee (it is a revenue source for the state) in addition to the federal documentation but only if the boat is docked in that state.

It is very common for boat owners in other states to set up a cheap corporation in Delaware for tax purposes to show ownership there. In many cases neither the boat nor the owner are in Delaware. If that is the case then there will not be registration in Delaware.

The official owner of the boat is a company named Hobo Co at the address in Delaware. That address in Delaware is the office of Delaware Registry, Ltd. Delaware Registry, Ltd is in the business of setting up Delaware corporations for individuals and companies that want a Delaware corporation, usually for tax reasons.

So Delaware Registry manages the paperwork and provides the Delaware mailing address for Hobo Co. If you want to find the owners of the boat you need to find out the owners of Hobo Co. Since Delaware Registry, Ltd is handling the paperwork for Hobo Co you should ask them the name of the corporate officers or actual owners of Hobo Co. who will then be the owners of Bird of Passage.

I believe corporate ownership is considered public information to prevent people from setting up dummy companies to avoid taxes and liabilities so I think the names is should be available. If Delaware Registry, Ltd will not tell you the names you might be able to get it from the state.

[Kettlewell]

You can send a letter to that Delaware company. It might be forwarded.

[Themonsheshe]

I know this boat and the owner if you are still looking 12 years later.

[kiwin]

I briefly worked on that boat in the eighties. Lovely boat. A different layout with the galley right forward. She also had a deck plate that could be removed giving access from the deck to a lifting eye in the keel allowing the boat to be single point lifted.

[Themonsheshe]

The boat belongs to my friends dad. It had been sold and was being delivered to New England but had a transmission failure and was towed in off cape hatteras.

[kiwin]

When I worked on her she was owned by a chap called Harry Orgler. He also owned a Banja motorsailor called Merdeka. He had made some money from interests in various New Jersey Midas exhaust shops.Last I heard he was in a nursing home in NJ somewhere