The Greatest Little Motor Boat Afloat: The Legendary Disappearing Propeller Boat

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

This fascinating book is packed to the gunnels with photos and ephemera
documenting the life, death, and resurrection of the odd little boat
called a “dispro,” “d.p.,” or “dippy.” The dispro is a
runabout or skill with a very small engine—one step up from a rowboat.
More than 3000 were manufactured in Muskoka, Ontario, between 1916 and
1958. Today there’s a fan club of devotees who restore and exhibit
dippies. The appeal of these boats is partly the unique feature from
which they take their name. The propeller could be drawn up into a metal
housing, even while the boat was running. This meant the boats could go
into very shallow water and be beached without damaging the propeller.

This book does an excellent job of recreating the romance of the
dispro; giving an understanding of its manufacture, sales, and usage;
and capturing the strong feelings it evoked from owners. Every page is
rich with reproductions of old advertisements, manufacturer’s
catalogue pages, photos, and historic documents.

As well as sections on the boat’s manufacturing era, there is a
hilarious collection of dippy anecdotes, an illustrated guide to dispro
terminology, an engine specification chart, a dating guide to serial
numbers, and other data of interest to boat restorers and local-history
enthusiasts. Anyone with an interest in the history of Ontario’s
cottage country or in small boats will enjoy this work.