Name: John Hetherington is first reported with an outboard on a fiberglass boat, 1956
Start: 1956-05-25
End: 1956-05-25
Location: Beaver Island

Event

Date: 1956-05-25
Kind: Transportation
Participants: John A. Hetherington Sr., MD (participant)
Eras: Modern era
Concepts: maritimecommunity
Within: Beaver Island

Summary

A 1961 retrospective records John Hetherington bringing an outboard-equipped fiberglass boat into the harbor on May 25, 1956.

Evidence and limits

The June 1956 issue supplies a contemporary notice, while the June 1961 item is a later retrospective. Neither establishes the boat’s builder, hull model, or technical specifications.

Sources

Beaver Beacon, June 1956, “May 25th” harbor notice.
The contemporary issue reports Dr. John Hetherington as the first to have his outboard in the harbor on a new type of fiberglass boat on May 25, 1956. It does not identify the builder, hull model, specifications, ownership records, or a comparative first-boat survey. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1956-06_Beaver-Beacon
Beaver Beacon, June 1956, held issue PDF, source scan.
The held five-page issue scan is paired with the contemporary OCR source and confirms the published harbor notice; it does not expand the vessel or technical record.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1956-06_Beaver-Beacon
Beaver Beacon, June 1961, island news and retrospective notices.
The June 1961 “Five Years Ago in the Beacon” column says that on May 25, 1956, Dr. John Hetherington was the first to have his outboard in the harbor on a new type of fiberglass boat. This record is based on a retrospective notice and does not establish the boat’s builder or technical specifications.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1961-06_Beaver-Beacon
Beaver Beacon, June 1961, held issue PDF, source scan.
The held six-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1961-06_Beaver-Beacon

Added 1 August 2026 · revised 3 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “John Hetherington is first reported with an outboard on a fiberglass boat, 1956”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/john-hetherington-fiberglass-outboard-boat-1956/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, June 1956, “May 25th” harbor notice. (and 3 further sources listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-03. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

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