QME FAQ

Quincy’s Sailboat: Key Facts

• Type: Staysail Schooner
• Length: Approximately 60 feet
• Builder: Edson B. Schnock
• Year Built: 1935
• Construction: Classic wooden yacht with traditional craftsmanship
• Rigging: Two-masted schooner rig with staysails between the masts and foretriangle
• Features: Elegant teak decks, varnished brightwork, curved transom, classic cutter rig elements
• Home Marina: Docked at Marina del Rey, California (as seen in the series)
• Significance: The boat’s classic design symbolizes Quincy’s independent spirit and love for the sea, offering a calm refuge from his demanding work as a medical examiner.

This sailboat is a 60 feet yacht.

Throughout the series, Dr. Quincy lives on a beautiful sailboat docked in a Southern California marina. Do we know the exact type, builder, or model of the boat?

Yes — and the answer is more impressive (and historically rich) than many fans might expect.

Quincy’s sailboat was a 60-foot staysail schooner, hand-built in 1935 by Edson B. Schnock, a highly regarded American shipwright known for crafting custom wooden yachts along the California coast. Far from a mass-produced vessel like the Columbia 50 (which some fans have incorrectly assumed over the years), this schooner was a one-of-a-kind, classic wooden yacht, reflecting a bygone era of nautical craftsmanship.

A staysail schooner is a type of two-masted sailing vessel where the foremast is shorter than the mainmast, and it carries additional staysails between the masts and fore triangle. The design offers power, elegance, and versatility at sea — ideal for long-range cruising or dockside living with serious style. In Quincy’s case, it also symbolized a life of personal freedom and quiet reflection, away from the bureaucracy and grit of his day job in the coroner’s office.

Fun Fact: The schooner was often shown docked at Marina del Rey, and its classic features — like the bright teak decking, graceful sheerline, and traditional rigging — made it a subtle yet powerful visual signature for the character. Scenes aboard the boat gave audiences a look at a softer, more introspective side of Quincy, surrounded by the sea rather than scalpels.

Legacy: As of today, boats built by Edson B. Schnock are considered rare collector’s items among classic yacht aficionados. The inclusion of this 1935 schooner in Quincy, M.E. wasn’t just for aesthetics — it was a nod to authenticity, depth, and timelessness, much like the character himself.

The microscope briefly shown in the intro credits of Quincy, M.E. is likely a vintage Bausch & Lomb or American Optical stereoscope, a type of stereo microscope popular in the 1960s and 1970s. These microscopes provide a three-dimensional view of larger objects and specimens, making them ideal for medical and forensic investigations.

Possible Model:

The instrument closely resembles a gray Bausch & Lomb StereoZoom microscope or maybe American Optical, featuring:

• Zoom magnification ranging from 0.7x to 3x
• 10x eyepieces
• Both top and bottom illumination option no doubt available
• Accessories such as darkfield lighting, object holders, and fine tweezers

Why the large circular viewing area?

Unlike traditional microscopes that use individual slides or very small samples, stereoscopes have a large circular viewing display, allowing users to observe larger, solid objects such as tissue samples, anatomical specimens, or small manufactured parts in three dimensions. This makes them particularly useful in forensic labs for examining things like tissue, organs, or other biological material where spatial context is crucial.

🧠 Historical Context:

Bausch & Lomb was a leading manufacturer of medical optical instruments, and their stereo microscopes were widely used in medical research, anatomical studies, and clinical labs during the era. The inclusion of such a microscope in Quincy, M.E. helps ground the show in authentic forensic science and medical investigation.

While the exact model can’t be definitively identified from the brief shot, it’s very likely a Bausch & Lomb stereo microscope—a perfect fit for the show’s medical-legal setting, providing detailed, 3D examination of larger specimens rather than thin slices on slides.