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Jaggar Sea Turtle
Boat-car · built by Thomas A. Jaggar
| Also known as | Sea Turtle |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Thomas A. Jaggar |
| Type | Boat-car |
| Status | One-off |
| Use | Civilian |
| Propulsion | |
| In water | Paddle |
| Hull | Boat hull |
Specifications need checking. Some figures here were taken from the archive and have not been confirmed against a source.
The Sea Turtle was an amphibious motor car designed by the volcanologist Dr Thomas A. Jaggar, who led an expedition to the Aleutian Islands with it. In 1945 Popular Mechanics called it the "grandpappy of the Duck", printing a National Geographic photograph of Jaggar sitting beside the vehicle.
Design
Popular Science described it as a boat built onto a Ford chassis. On land it ran as a car; for use afloat, paddle wheels were fitted to the rear wheels and drove the craft forward, while the disc-shaped front wheels served as rudders.
The sources disagree on its size: Popular Science gives the boat as 16 feet (about 4.9 m) long, while a National Geographic caption speaks of a 21-foot (about 6.4 m) steel craft. It is possible that more than one version existed.
Use
Photographs show the Sea Turtle on an Aleutian island and putting out to sea during the expedition.
3 Photographs
5 photographs in the archive folder. Click any image to view it full size.
4 Related vehicles
Compare the Jaggar Sea Turtle with another vehicle.
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