Merritt 38 in Palm Beach

The 37 Footers An avid fisherman, Buddy Merritt built what he perceived to be the perfect fishing boat. The first of his 37-footers were totally lacking the luxuries taken for granted today. They were built for one purpose: to raise and catch fish. In all, 13 of these famed 37-footers were built, and 12 survive to this day (one was lost to fire caused by stray fireworks while the boat was out of the water in a boat yard). The Merritt 37 and the Rybovich 36 pioneered a style that gained popularity in the 1950s and 1960s with an open deckhouse (no bulkhead aft) and a flying bridge. Ryco Marine hull #6 imitated this style in 1991 with its launch of a 38-foot (12 m) dayboat, Wildcat.[1]