Motor yacht Kensington on the ways at Jensen Motor Boat Company, circa 1929. For more than a hundred years, the Pacific Northwest has ranked as a center for vessel design, construction and preservation. Beginning with the advent of the Pacific cod fishery in the 1880s, utilizing the raw material afforded by the vast Northwest forests, Seattle-area boat builders began creating one of the world’s great fishing fleets. Soon, they would craft sailing ships to support the lumber and cargo trades, and work boats that sustained Pacific commerce.