Samuel (Sam) Feltham knows a thing or two about boats. He built his first boat in 1942 at the age of 14. Since then he has built over 100 boats including rodneys, trap boats, speed boats, dories, cabin cruisers, and a few models.
Feltham was born on Deer Island in Bonavista Bay so boats were naturally an important element in his life. Boats were used for fishing, getting from community to community, and hauling logs. “Everyone on Deer Island made their own boats,” explained Feltham.
There were 17 families on Deer Island when Feltham was born on March 3, 1928. He has fond memories of growing up on the island. “On Deer Island, you fetched for yourself. You raised your own cattle and grew your own vegetables. You bought everything you needed in the fall of the year, after the men returned from their fishing season.” Feltham’s father fished in Labrador.
When he was a boy, Feltham learned carpentry and boat building from Noah Feltham, a handyman on Deer Island who made everything from boats to leg casts.
Feltham was a quick study; when he was 10 years old, he built furniture for his mother’s living room. Pieces of this furniture still exist in the family today. By the time he was 14, he was already building boats from stem to stern. His first was a six-footer built in his mother’s kitchen.
“The boat floated, but turned over, so it was put away!” laughed Feltham.
Feltham didn’t give up on boat building. A year later, he built a 16-foot fishing rodney. His father caulked it on his 16th birthday. They used it for fishing and for hauling logs from Indian Bay.
In his late teens, Feltham spent three seasons on coastal boats in Labrador. In the winter, he continued to build boats. Feltham made 15-foot rodneys that he sold to the Newfoundland government for 50 dollars each. They were used at Labrador posts.
In 1954, Feltham moved to Glovertown and often travelled to Gander and St. John’s to work as a carpenter. He helped build Gander’s airport in the 1950s and also worked at the air force base in that town. In the early 1980s, he was shop foreman overseeing construction of the Arctic Vessel and Marine Research Institute at the National Research Council in St. John’s.
Today, Feltham lives in Glovertown with his wife Bernice. Together, they have raised four boys and have eight grandchildren and one great granddaughter.
Feltham recently completed a 14-foot rodney for his son Paul, who will use it for recreation. He is also passing on a few tips to other boat enthusiasts in the family. “My son Jerry bought a fibreglass boat,” said Feltham. “I’m helping him – showing him – to do things like put in a steering wheel.” Through Feltham’s guidance, a new generation within his family is ready for the water.
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