Esserman Yacht Sales

Hunter Marine - A glance at the historical roots of Hunter Marine

The roots of Hunter Marine actually began back in the 1800's with a German immigrant by the name of Henry Luhrs. He became involved in the outfitting of trading ships and eventually owned a chandlery and then his own ship, The Sophia R. Luhrs.

His grandson, another Henry, was also in love with the sea and continued the family heritage by building and repairing family cruisers and fishing boats on the New Jersey coast. Before long, Henry and his sons, John and Warren, were building over a thousand boats a year.

In 1965, the company, Henry Luhrs Sea Skiffs, was sold to Bangor Punta, a large timber conglomerate. John and Warren went out on their own. In 1969 they bought a small New Jersey builder named Silverton Sea Skiffs and became very successful by following the same techniques their father had shown them.

An early lapstrake model

Henry Luhrs

Warren Luhrs

Warren, being an avid sailor, knew they could bring production line efficiencies to the sailing industry and in 1973, launched their first Hunter sailboat, a 25-foot Cherubini designed sloop.
The boat was well accepted and Hunter was well on its way to become a major force in the sailboat industry. Warren became involved in ocean racing and set many records aboard Thursday's Child and Hunter's Child. These floating test beds became the basis for many of Hunter's innovations including B & R rigs, arches and water-ballast. The New HC 50 is based on the success of Hunter's Child, which provided veteran ocean racer, Steve Pettengill, the best ever finish for an American in the last BOC Around the World Race.
Today, Hunter Marine Corporation is part of the Luhrs Marine Group. It includes Silverton Marine Corporation, builders of family inboard cruisers, Mainship Trawlers, and the Luhrs Corporation, known for sportfishing boats.

Hunter's Child

All four of these companies share information, technology and buying power to bring you the best value on the water. Hunter Marine currently produces 24 foot through 50 foot boats in the state of the art, Alachua, Florida plant and builds 9 through 21 foot Advanced Composite Process trailerables at it's Hunter Composite Technolgies, Inc.division in East Lyme, CT. The Luhrs Marine Group has recently opened another facility in the United Kingdom, Luhrs Marine Limited, which builds Hunter mid-size sailboats for the European market. These innovative sailboats are now marketed in over 45 countries throughout the world. They are also certified by the NMMA and the Community of Europe and are in compliance with the ABYC. Hunter Marine is also one of the first companies to achieve Marine Industry Certification.