 A precursor to the dory type was the early French bateau type, a flat bottom boat with straight sides used as early as 1671 on the Saint Lawrence River.The common coastal boat of the time was the wherry and the merging of the wherry design with the simplified flat bottom of the bateau resulted in the birth of the dory.England, France, Italy, and Belgium have small boats from medieval periods that could reasonably be construed as predecessors of the Dory.