The Wooden Boat Centre was established in l992 by John and Ruth Young as Shipwright’s Point School of Wooden Boatbuilding. This was at Shipwright’s Point, Port Huon. John and Ruth Young managed the School jointly from 1992 to 2000 and were responsible for creating the Wooden Boat Centre's status as Australia's first registered provider of an Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) Level 5 qualification in wooden boatbuilding.
In 1994 the School moved to a bigger workshop at Franklin.
In December 2000, the School was purchased by Southern Training, Employment and Placement Solutions (STEPS) Inc, a local not-for-profit community organisation. STEPS was established in the Huon Valley in 1984 to provide training and employment services, and currently ranks as one of the most effective providers of employment services and training in southern Australia.
STEPS has expanded the School's Franklin premises to include two additional workshops, a visitor and interpretation centre, and extensive walkways and access to the river for visitors and small boat users.
This expansion has been marked by the change of name in December 2002 to The Wooden Boat Centre Tasmania .
Since its inception, The Wooden Boat Centre has had over 450 students of all ages who have produced over 55 wooden dinghies, repaired clinker and carvel boats and attended recreational classes dealing with related subjects.
In 2003 STEPS leased the Visitors Centre to a private operator, who in 2006 also took over responsibility for the boatbuilding and teaching programme.
