Why is a boat divided into 64 shares?

Ownership of a Canadian vessel is divided into 64 shares, just like the vast majority of boats from foreign maritime countries, with the exception of the United States of America. The historical reasons for this division into 64 shares vary. It could be because there was a time where vessels had 64 frames, or it could be because, in the Victorian era, vessels were taxed at a 36% rate, leaving the owners of a vessel to derisively consider that they only owned 64% of their vessel.

The division of the property in a vessel is now a requirement of the Canada Shipping Act, 2001, and it therefore became a standard practice in all legal forms and documents.