Founded in 1966 by brothers Lawson, Timothy and Winston Sargeant, the workshop sits just past the vegetable market in Port Elizabeth. According to Lawson Sargeant, the three brothers learned woodworking in their father's carpentry shop and, as teenagers, built small coconut shell boats to race across Admiralty Bay before school. In 1985, a model of HMY Britannia, Queen Elizabeth II's royal yacht, carved by Lawson Sargeant, was presented to the Queen by Vincentian Prime Minister James Mitchell; she reportedly found it so faithful that only its size set it apart from the real ship (sources: Searchlight, All At Sea). The workshop, now run by Timothy Sargeant with a team of artisans, works exclusively by hand in mahogany and white pine, and takes direct commissions from visiting yacht owners, with no ticketing or online booking.
Shopping & CraftsmanshipAll year round
Sargeant Brothers Model Boat Shop, ship models in Bequia
In Port Elizabeth, on the island of Bequia, the Sargeant family has hand carved model schooners and sailboats since 1966, including commissions from yacht owners.