For over a year [after the start of WWII] the Penobscot Bay islands had no regular ferry service. Local fishermen and boat owners filled in as best they could. Then, at a special town meeting in August 1942, Vinalhaven voted to raise $55,000 to build a powerboat. The result was a sixty-five-foot, diesel-powered “motorship” named “Vinalhaven II,” built in Southwest Harbor, Maine. The boat went into service in July 1943, and Charles Philbrook was her captain…” – “Stories from the Maine Coast: Skppers, Ships and Storms” by Harry Gratwick, The History Press, 2012, p. 54-55.
"The “Vinalhaven II”, 57 gross tons owned by the Vinalhaven Port District, Inc. of Rockland was built [by Southwest Boat Corporation] in 1943 to serve the island of Vinalhaven with passenger and freight service to Rockland." - "Boatbuilding During World War II: MDI, Ellsworth, Stonington and Bluehill" by Ralph W. Stanley, p. 10 - 1997.
“Vinalhaven II” was designed by Cyrus “Cy” Hamlin.
“Clarence” Bennett, a fisherman, was one of the group that raised the money to build “Vinalhaven II.” – Ralph W. Stanley 2011.
