John Milgate

John Milgate grew up on Mersea Island on the Essex coast, just steps from the old punt shed of boatbuilder William Wyatt. He started working in Wyatt’s yard at age 13, just after World War II, and spent the next 55 years repairing fishing smacks, yachts, and the local working craft that defined life around the Colne and Blackwater estuaries. When he retired in 2001, he kept right on building in his home workshop. Wanting a simple, inexpensive boat he could launch quickly while restoring his 1892 smack, PURITAN OF COLCHESTER, Milgate turned his attention to designing a modern duck punt. At the time, no one in West Mersea was building punts anymore, so Milgate studied surviving examples and created a design that preserved the traditional Wyatt style but used modern materials and efficient construction. His plywood punt—light, affordable, and built from just three sheets—became an instant classic. Stable, fast in thin water, and easy to sail, pole, or row, the Milgate punt revived a local tradition and made the craft accessible again. Today, duck punts built to his plans are widely used around Mersea, proving that Milgate’s blend of simplicity, practicality, and respect for local heritage still fits the marshes as well as it ever did.