125 hp, 298.5 cu. in. L-head inline eight-cylinder engine. Length: 21 ft. 6 in.

• Unique Dodge and Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg collaboration

• Believed fewer than 100 examples remaining

• Extensive expert restoration

John Dodge and Horace Dodge Sr. built a reputation and a fortune in the early years of the automotive business in Detroit. They were both accomplished machinists and became suppliers who could be trusted to deliver precisely manufactured parts on time. An early contract with Oldsmobile led to a relationship with Ford, which ultimately led to the establishment of the Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company in 1914. The brothers were on a roll, as they travelled to New York for the National Automobile Show on January 2, 1920.

Both brothers fell ill in New York with influenza; John died in his hotel suite on January 14. Horace Sr. recovered, though he passed later that year. While the Dodge brothers left the company in capable hands, the grieving widows accepted an offer of $146 million for the company in 1924. It was the largest single private-business cash transaction in the United States up to that time. It left the two Dodge families among the wealthiest in the United States.

Horace Elgin Dodge Jr. showed little interest or aptitude for the automobile business. He was a charming, rogue-ish young man who displayed an aptitude for drinking and attending parties late into the night. His one stated goal was to become a successful boat racer and his idol was Gar Wood. He convinced his mother to fund the Horace E. Dodge Boat Works, to build Dodge “Watercars,” which would be powered by marinized Dodge four-cylinder automobile engines and be sold like automobiles through Dodge Brothers automobile dealers. Beginning with the rather utilitarian “Watercar” model, Horace quickly realized he had neither the aptitude nor the attention span to run a company. He turned to George Crouch, a renowned naval architect, to oversee production and design the boats. This collaboration resulted in some of the most beautiful boats ever built.

Horace had the financial wherewithal to buy whatever he thought he needed, and this fact led to the collaboration between Dodge boats and Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg. Horace approached E.L. Cord to supply engines from the ACD subsidiary Lycoming. As Dodge was one of the very few entities able to pay cash, Cord agreed. The result of this collaboration is seen in this Dodge boat, which is not only powered by its original 125 horsepower Lycoming straight eight, but also features a Duesenberg steering wheel and a Cord shifter.

This boat also shows the Dodge attention to detail, with intricate hardware, including the only “hood ornament” ever incorporated into a production boat. The 21-foot 6-inch split cockpit model was unique to the Dodge lineup, in that it was a relatively small model that included all the detail and luxury of the larger, more expensive models. This particular example was treated to an extensive restoration by a very knowledgeable vintage boat collector a number of years ago and has seen little use in the intervening years. Dodge boats are considered to be the rarest of the major boat manufacturers, as they built the fewest boats in the first place; it is likely there are fewer than 100 Dodge boats in existence today.