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Canoes: A Natural History in North America

Mark Neuzil and Norman Sims

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This is the story of the canoe, that singular American artifact so little changed over time. Featured here are canoes old and new, from birch bark to dugout to carbon fiber; the people who made them; and the adventures they shared. With features of technology, industry, art, and survival, the canoe carries us deep into the natural and cultural history of North America.

Follow author Mark Neuzil on Twitter: @mrneuzil

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Published: 2016

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

ISBN(s)

9780816681174 (hardcover)

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An oil painting of four canoes traveling past Picture Rock.

Picture Rock at Crooked Lake (Return of the Voyageur)

From Introduction

Francis Lee Jaques, Picture Rock at Crooked Lake (Return of the Voyageur), 1947. Oil on canvas, 83.8 x 106.6 cm.

Solitary paddler sits in a birch-bark canoe at Moose Factory, Ontario.

Solitary Paddler at Moose Factory

From Chapter 2: Birch-Bark Canoes

Solitary paddler sits in a birch-bark canoe at Moose Factory, Ontario.

A color photograph of a forest of birch trees.

Birch Forest

From Chapter 2: Birch-Bark Canoes

Birch trees at Bognor Marsh near Georgian Bay off Lake Huron.

A color photograph of a birch-bark canoe.

Birch-Bark Canoe

From Chapter 2: Birch-Bark Canoes

The Cree were excellent birch-bark builders, as seen in this boat dating from the period 1875–1900.

A color photograph of a grove of spruce trees in the winter. Snow is on the ground.

Black Spruce Trees

From Chapter 2: Birch-Bark Canoes

Black spruce trees, from which roots were grubbed and made into sewing materials, are plentiful in northern and northeastern forests near birch trees.

A group of scattered forest rangers, sitting, socializing, and relaxing on the grass alongside canoes. A cabin is in the background.

Forest Rangers

From Chapter 2: Birch-Bark Canoes

Forest rangers needed canoes to travel on the frontier just as natives, trappers, and explorers did.

A cedar-strip canoe made in Peterborough, Ontario, on exhibit at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, New York, 2005.

Cedar-Strip Canoe

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

A cedar-strip canoe made in Peterborough, Ontario, on exhibit at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, New York, 2005.

A color photograph of a beautiful cedar strip canoe built by the Lakefield Canoe Company of Peterborough ca. 1925–1930. The canoe uses three wide boards as planking on either side. It is pictured in the water, next to a wooden dock.

Lakefield Cedar-Strip Canoe

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

This beautiful cedar strip canoe was built by the Lakefield Canoe Company of Peterborough ca. 1925–1930. The canoe uses three wide boards as planking on either side.

John Stephenson, one of the early innovators of canoe design in Peterborough.

John Stephenson

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

John Stephenson, one of the early innovators of canoe design in Peterborough.

Employees of the William English Canoe Company pose with a giant war canoe built in the factory on Charlotte Street in Peterborough, Ontario.

Employees of the William English Canoe Company

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

Employees of the William English Canoe Company pose with a giant war canoe built in the factory on Charlotte Street in Peterborough, Ontario.

Rice Lake Canoe Company catalog from 1900.

Rice Lake Canoe Company Catalog

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

Rice Lake Canoe Company catalog from 1900.

This drawing shows the Ontario Canoe Company factory in Peterborough in the early 1880s.

Ontario Canoe Company Factory

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

This drawing shows the Ontario Canoe Company factory in Peterborough in the early 1880s.

A black-and-white photograph of the first Canadian Canoe Company factory. The factory stood on Water Street in Peterborough from 1892–1904 near the rail office where all the canoes made in town were shipped.

Canadian Canoe Company Factory

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

The first Canadian Canoe Company factory stood on Water Street in Peterborough from 1892–1904 near the rail office where all the canoes made in town were shipped.

A black-and-white photograph of workers in the canoe factory building canoes.

Building at the Canadian Canoe Company Factory

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

The building department at the Canadian Canoe Company factory, ca. late nineteenth century.

Sawdust litters the floor of the workshop at the Canadian Canoe Company factory as builders fashion canoes in distinctive shapes.

Sawdust at the Canadian Canoe Company Factory

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

Sawdust litters the floor of the workshop at the Canadian Canoe Company factory as builders fashion canoes in distinctive shapes.

A black-and-white photograph of workers in the Canadian Canoe Company factory applying varnish to canoes.

Varnish Room at the Canadian Canoe Company Factory

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

A coat of varnish was one of the final steps in canoe construction at the Canadian Canoe Company factory.

A woman races in a solo open canoe class in 1922 at a regatta in Chemong Park just north of Peterborough.

Chemong Park Regatta

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

A woman races in a solo open canoe class in 1922 at a regatta in Chemong Park just north of Peterborough.

The cover of a Lakefield Canoes Catalogue, with red and gold text embossed on a light green background. The text reads, "Lakefield Canoes. The Lakefield Canoe and Boat Co., Limited, Lakefield, Ontario."

Lakefield Canoes Catalogue

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

Lakefield Canoes Catalogue

The cover of a Rice Lake Canoe Catalogue. Red text that reads "The Rice Lake Canoe. 'Safest Canoe Built' Designed and built by The Rice Lake Canoe Co. Gore's Landing, ONT, Canada. sits on top of a tan background, and is deocorated with the simple sketch of a canoe.

Rice Lake Canoe Catalogue

From Chapter 4: All-Wood Canoes

Rice Lake Canoe Catalogue

This 16-foot “Comfort Craft” courting canoe was built by the Peterborough Canoe Company in 1904. Also known as the “Girling Canoe,” it came equipped with lockers under the side decks for a phonograph and records. The front seat faced the stern of the canoe.

"Girling Canoe"

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

This 16-foot “Comfort Craft” courting canoe was built by the Peterborough Canoe Company in 1904. Also known as the “Girling Canoe,” it came equipped with lockers under the side decks for a phonograph and records. The front seat faced the stern of the canoe.