Hinckley was founded in 1928 by Benjamin B. Hinckley after he purchased a small boatyard in Southwest Harbor, ME. In 1932 Benjamin’s son, Henry R. Hinckley, an engineering graduate from Cornell, took control of the company. A 36-foot “fisherman motorboat” dubbed “Ruthyeolyn” built in 1933 was Hinckley’s first boat.[1] Five years later, in 1938, Hinckley came out with its first sailing vessel, a 28-foot Sparkman and Stevens sloop. Hinckley would go on to produce 20 of these sloops, making them the company’s first mass production line. Straying away from boatbuilding, Hinckley then opened Manset Marine Supply Company in 1940 for which he designed many fittings for fuel tanks, stanchions, deck plates, and the like that are still utilized today.
At the start of World War II Hinckley turned to manufacturing war-designed boats. At the end of the war Hinckley’s contributions totaled nearly 40% of all war boats built in Maine, for which the company was awarded two Army-Navy “E’s” for excellence in 1942 and 1943. Hinckley’s production of pleasure boats began soon after the war.
In 1945 the Sou’wester sailboat was created. 62 original Sou’Westers were built, making it the largest fleet of single design cruising boats of its time.[1] During the 1950s, Hinckley began experimenting with the use of fiberglass to construct his yachts’ hulls by building small runabouts. His first fiberglass sailboat, the Bermuda 40, was launched in 1960. The last Hinckley-built wooden boat was the 1960 “Osprey.” Throughout the 1960s the company provided navigation systems along with autopilots and electric-powered furling mainsails.
In 1979 Henry Hinckley sold the company to Richard Tucker. Tucker hired William Moyer to run the company where he oversaw the development of the Sou’wester 42. Due to the recession of the early 80’s, the luxury sail boat market fell on hard times and Tucker made the decision to sell the company. In 1982, Henry’s son Bob bought the company back with the help of his business partner Shepard McKenney. The two released Hinckley’s first fiberglass powerboat christened “Talaria” in 1989. The last of the Bermuda 40’s was produced in 1991, bringing the total number of B40’s produced to 203 over its 32-year lifespan.[1]
Hinckley became the first American boat company to use SCRIMP technology (a method of making composite material with nearly no volatile organic compound  emissions) in its yachts, for which Hinckley was awarded the United States Environmental Protection Agency's, Environmental Merit Award in 1994.  Also in 1994, the company first used its jet propulsion technology.
The company again fell under new ownership in 1997 when it was purchased by The Bain, Willard Companies for approximately $20 million. William Bain, Ralph Willard, and Alexander Spaulding took over operations. Under the new ownership, Hinckley began to market power boats equipped with jet dribes. The company also developed more advanced fiberglass construction techniques dubbed "Dual Guard", which aimed to create a stronger hull.
In 2001 Bain, Willard Companies sold a 51% controlling interest in The Hinckley Company to a Massachusetts based Monitor Clipper Partners for $40 million in debt and equity.
Company overview: Hinckley currently conducts operations in twelve U.S. locations. Due to economic forces the company reduced its workforce in mid-2008 to 305 at the end of August 2009. By May 2017, The Hinckley Company employed 685 workers in its boatyards, boat building and corporate facilities in the U.S. Hinckley acquired Hunt Yachts in August 2014 and Morris Yachts the following year. The acquisitions added two boat building facilities and one additional yacht yard which are all continuing operations.
Current yachts: Hinckley no longer builds sailing yachts, their current line of yachts includes seven powerboats ranging in length from 29 to 55 feet and two sailing vessels from 42 to 50 feet (each boat’s length is represented by the number preceded by its name).
- The powerboats are made up of three Talaria models, which are offered with or without flybridges so some may consider this six models; two Picnic Boats; three runabouts and one center console.
- The Talaria fleet was first built in 1989.The present line includes: Center Console 29; Runabout 29, Runabout 34, Runabout 38, Picnic Boat 34, Picnic Boat 37, Talaria 43 FB/MY, Talaria 48 FB/MY and Talaria 55 FB/MY[1] The Runabout 38 includes a “hydraulically operated convertible top” and is “all about curves, shadows, highlights, and reflections”.[5] The Talaria 43 was lauded by the press and appeared on the covers of Powerand Motoryacht magazine and Yachting magazine in October 2014 following its introduction that year.
The Bermuda 40, designed by William H. Tripp, Jr., was introduced in 1959 as Hinckley’s first fiberglass boat.. According to Jack Horner of spinsheet.com “the B-40 was to become the bellwether for future production and established Hinckley as the premier North American Yacht builder of exceptional quality sailing yachts”.[7] The last B40 was built in 1991, ending its 32nd year of production with the 203rd rendition of the trendsetting yacht.
