The powerboat is defined as any kind of boat powered by any engine except a steam engine. While steam-powered boats date from as early as the late 1790s, boats with other power sources did not come into existence until nearly a century later. Perhaps the first powerboat designed for pleasure was developed by F. W. Ofeldt of the United States in 1885. His 21-foot (6.4 m) launch used a two-horsepower engine that was fueled by naphtha gas, a type of liquid fuel related to gasoline.

German inventor Gottlieb Daimler is usually credited with building the first boat powered by a gasoline engine--a project that he soon abandoned in favor of his work on the automobile. A boat powered by an electric motor and battery was exhibited at the Paris Exposition in 1889. Despite these early developments, boating did not become popular until certain improvements to the gasoline engine made powerboating practical...