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Elco History - Over 100 Years of Silent, Clean, Electric Marine Propulsion
In 1892, the Electric Launch Company was incorporated and in 1893, introduced the first commercially produced electric motor boats to America and the world at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. At this first world’s fair in the new world there were fifty-five 36' launches, which carried 1,026,340 passengers on 66,975 trips. By 1900, electric powered pleasure boats outnumbered boats powered by steam and explosive (as gasoline powered motors were called) engines combined. By 1910, when the advantages of the range and power of gasoline grew to dominate the market, even Elco converted over to gasoline. However, electric boats were remembered and appreciated because they were quiet, clean, simple, inexpensive to maintain and much easier to start and operate.
During WW I, the company built five hundred and fifty 80-foot sub chasers for the British Admiralty and then in 1921, it introduced the famous 26-foot Cruisette, a gasoline cabin cruiser thought of as the Model “T” of modern pleasure boating. This success was followed in the 1930’s with 30′ to 57′ Veedettes and Flattops, gasoline powered boats that set the highest standard in a golden era of boating. Responding to the “call to arms” and World War II, Elco developed the famous PT boats, building 399 of these 80-foot torpedo boats with Packard aircraft engines and at the peak of production – one PT boat was built every 60 hours. An Elco retrieved General Douglas MacArthur from the Philippines and PT 109, captained by Lt.jg. Jack Kennedy, was an Elco. At the end of the war, the company merged with its sister company, Electric Boat, of Groton, CT to form the nucleus of a new corporation, General Dynamics. In 1949, General Dynamics decided to focus on government contracts for submarines at Electric Boat and military and commercial aviation sales at Convair. Selling boats to the general public did not fit into this equation and the Company was closed. In 1987, the Company was re-incorporated in New Jersey by Joseph W. Fleming, Jr., an entrepreneur in the electrical equipment industry with a lifelong interest in antique and classic boats and a father who had worked building PT boats for the Company. With the cooperation and approval of General Dynamics, the new Company took its name and the "Elco" trademark from the original Electric Launch Company. From 1987 to 1995, the Company built replicas of classic fantail electric launches, award-winning custom-built gasoline powered boats, and even ventured into catalog sales. Then the company changed ownership and management January 1, 1996, the Company returned to its 1892 origins and redirected its focus on electric motor boats and electric drives for sailboats and other boats for the marine market. In the opinion of its management, the Company is the leader in the design, development and supply of electric boats and inboard and outboard electric drives. These Elco products are being used successfully in a variety of applications on both fresh and salt water where quiet, simple operation and environmental benefits are primary considerations. Elco has
been a member of the American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC). All
launches, electric drives, restorations and upgrades meet or exceed both
ABYC and United States Coast Guard standards for construction,
mechanical and electrical safety and design. Elco is a manufacturer of quality electric
launches and electric drive systems. Our launches are made with
the finest materials and engineered to exacting standards. Elco's
high efficiency electric drive systems are compact and can be
installed into new or existing boats from small day sailors to 36
ft. excursion boats. If you have any questions about Elco
products, please contact us.
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