The 80′ Trumpy houseboat MAURETANIA was built for cruising the Intracoastal waterway on the East Coast. For the past 43 years, she has hailed from Southern California, where she is active in the charter trade.
“This is not a ‘kiss and tell’ boat, as we are committed to protecting the privacy of our clients,” says Jack Boyt with a sly grin on his face as he delivers his punchline. “However, I will tell you this. There were at least three murders aboard MAURETANIA one year…on location shoots for the TV series NCIS, Criminal Minds, and Without a Trace.” The yacht has also hosted Melrose Place, 90210, Comedy Central, and others. Film credits include Beggarman, Thief (1979 with Glenn Ford, Jean Simmons, and Lynn Redgrave), and Action Jackson (1988 with Carl Weathers, Vanity, and Sharon Stone).
Boyt and his wife, Ann, have been MAURETANIA’s owners for the past 43 years, and the team that has made her a darling of the California film industry both on and off the silver screen. Even before the yacht began seducing Hollywood she led a charmed life. MAURETANIA is one of renowned designer-builder John Trumpy’s glamorous motor yachts (such as the longtime U.S. presidential yacht SEQUOIA), which The New York Times called “the Rolls Royce of American motor yachts.”
Trumpy, a Norwegian immigrant, called these designs “houseboats” because you can walk the length of the main deck without going up or down a step. But the “houseboat” moniker is typical Trumpy understatement. At 80′ LOA and 18′ beam, MAURETANIA is palatial. Trumpy designed the yacht and many of her sisters in the 1930s with the plumb bow, foredeck canopy, and fully varnished house typical of those times, and with shallow draft—4′ 6″ in MAURETANIA’s case—so their wealthy owners could navigate the Intracoastal Waterway in leisurely style from their summer homes on Long Island Sound to their winter compounds at Palm Beach, Florida.
Trumpy built the yacht at the Mathis-Trumpy yard at Gloucester, New Jersey, in 1947 with white-oak framing, longleaf-pine planking, and teak decking. She was the yard’s contract No. 329, built for Col. Frederick Pope, a senior official in President Franklin Roosevelt’s administration. Pope reportedly named the vessel after his wife, Marilyn (actually Mary Stockton McLaughlin). The name was changed several times, and in 1979 a new owner wanted an elegant name for the elegant yacht and changed it to MAURETANIA.
Trumpy houseboats have been celebrated for their refined, spacious interiors. MAURETANIA has a large main saloon, three staterooms for guests, and an expansive galley and pantry. Accessed by a staircase off the butler’s pantry, the crew’s quarters include a dining space, berths, and a head. As configured today, MAURETANIA is not only a backdrop for television and film shoots but also a vehicle for private celebrity escapes to quiet coves at Santa Catalina Island, 20 miles off the coast of Southern California, and Paradise Cove, north of Malibu. The yacht is a U.S. Coast Guard–inspected charter vessel that can host up to 60 guests. She cruises at a stately 10 knots, keeping fuel usage to about 10 gallons per hour.
Secretary
A secretary aft in the main saloon is comfortably lit by silver sconces, only one of which is visible in this photograph. It is adjacent to a roll-up window with a Pullman-style scissor lift. A distinctive bronze scallop shell centered under the window covers the lift mechanism and is a recognized Trumpy trademark. Mahogany paneling and accents give MAURETANIA an opulent feel.
Autopilot Control
The 1950s-era Bendix Marine Autopilot still makes navigation comfortable while underway. Owners Jack and Ann Boyt have made a point of keeping MAURETANIA as original as possible with the help of their “sidekick” Mary Berumen, master carpenter Mark Schoettlin, and Ryan Richards and his team at Wilmington Iron Works. The ground tackle, J.L. Mott plumbing fixtures, and H.S. Getty cabinet and door hardware are all original. MAURETANIA was built in an era when equipment was maintained and repaired, not replaced.
Helm Station
MAURETANIA’s classic wheel, binnacle (with its original Danforth-White Constellation compass), and Sperry Hydraulics manual hydraulic transmission and throttle controls are the centerpieces of the pilothouse. The clutch mechanism lever at the bottom engages the autopilot system. The 60′ steering cable can give the helmsman a workout.
Master Stateroom
The master stateroom incorporates an adjacent private head that has a spacious shower with original Mott fixtures. The hanging locker unobtrusively accommodates 50 lifejackets. A sister hanging locker on the starboard side (not visible) includes a safe to protect valuables. Similarly, the captain’s cabin (below) is furnished with a Pullman-style basin, a bureau, and an extensive hanging locker.
Captain’s Cabin
Stairway
The stairway to the three staterooms below shows off the signature Trumpy carpentry with its banisters and railing details. The joinery (to the right) houses the components of the vessel’s sound system controls and intercom.
Guest Quarters
MAURETANIA’s overnight accommodations remain limited to its original three staterooms for two passengers each. Belowdecks, the central companionway leads forward to both guest staterooms. The master stateroom is aft. This lower deck also includes sliding wooden privacy shutters on each window. Usually, no more than 35 to 40 passengers are carried on harbor cruises, ensuring the feel of a garden party as guests can stroll the spacious decks while enjoying food and beverages served by the dining staff.
Galley
MAURETANIA’s renewed galley matches the original, retaining all of the stainless-steel countertops and mahogany joinery. The current galley replaces the original oil-burning stove and water heater with two Wolf commercial-grade gas ranges and two convection ovens.
Crew Quarters
Looking forward in MAURETANIA’s crew quarters, one can see three pipe berths in addition to the two cabins (one door is shown) and the crew head and shower. Under charter, the yacht normally carries a crew of up to five: captain, mate, chef, and two bartender-stewards.
Engines
MAURETANIA’s twin Detroit Diesel 8V-71s were installed in the 1960s, replacing the original 6-71s and providing 340 hp each. Retaining these traditional main engines ensures durability and reliability while avoiding the complications of modern, sensor-controlled advancements. A Detroit Diesel 2-53 provides a 15kW auxiliary source of electrical power to back up a recently added Northern Lights 16kW generator.
Workbench
A convenient workbench mirrors the original for easy access to maintenance tools. The 110/220V AC panel installed during a 1990 Coast Guard inspection process is very different from the original 110V DC electrical system, which still used knife switches.
Watertight Door
Coast Guard certification required a watertight door in the forward bulkhead. To meet current safety standards, every piece of the original two-conductor AC electrical wiring was pulled off the boat and replaced with three-conductor wire.
Portside Deck
By tradition, the starboard side of the yacht is for the guests to move about and the port side is for the crew to go forward and aft to perform their duties. The ladder provides access to the boat deck topside.
Anchor Windlass
The intricacies of the anchor windlass and the fish davit are left to the crew for the rare occasions when the vessel is to be anchored. Traditionally, the yacht traveled from one yacht club dock to another.
Trumpy Scroll
The legendary Trumpy scroll is a stylized T. Reportedly, these scrolls were not routinely provided and might be omitted if John Trumpy was not particularly keen on the boat’s owner. A key component of maintenance has been the wood of the boat. During an extensive haulout in 1989–90, the Boyts replaced the hull’s bottom planking and made repairs to some soft frame heels.
Builder’s Plate
The plaque in the wheelhouse attests to the yacht’s builder and records its place of construction. MAURETANIA was one of the last Trumpy yachts built in New Jersey before the operation moved to Trumpy’s new home across from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
Afterdeck
The spacious afterdeck (above) is a popular gathering spot whether the yacht is docked, awaiting its final guests to arrive in Los Angeles Harbor, underway on a sunset cruise, or moored in Avalon Harbor or Howlands Cove at Santa Catalina Island. Guests like to linger under the canopy on the foredeck (below) for morning coffee and afternoon cocktails.
Foredeck
Steve Jost and Randall Peffer are regular contributors to WoodenBoat.