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  2. Canoes: A Natural History in North America

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)
Subject
  • History
  • Cultural Studies
  • Literature
  • Native American Studies
  • Regional Studies

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  • Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes16
  • Sidebar: Canoe Sails1
  • Chapter 6: Synthetic Canoes3
  • Sidebar: Paddles1
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  • Old Town
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An illustration depicting several of the beautiful color designs available in 1926 for Old Town canoes.

Old Town Designs

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Several of the beautiful color designs available in 1926 for Old Town canoes.

Shipments of Old Town canoes arrived wrapped in straw and burlap at Shenk & Tittle, a sporting goods store in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Old Town Canoe Shipment

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Shipments of Old Town canoes arrived wrapped in straw and burlap at Shenk & Tittle, a sporting goods store in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Dozens of newly finished canoes were stored on the roof of The Old Town Canoe Company factory.

Newly Finished Old Town Canoes

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Dozens of newly finished canoes were stored on the roof of The Old Town Canoe Company factory.

The George A. Gray hardware store of Old Town, Maine, in 1906. George Gray stands at the far left.

George A. Gray Hardware Store

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

The George A. Gray hardware store of Old Town, Maine, in 1906. George Gray stands at the far left.

The labels of Abiel Bickmore’s salve and powder that cured sores on work horses. The Bickmore powder, backed in 1884 by Herbert and George Gray, gave the Gray family national distribution experience that they used in marketing canoes.

Abiel Bickmore's Salve & Powder

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

The labels of Abiel Bickmore’s salve and powder that cured sores on work horses. The Bickmore powder, backed in 1884 by Herbert and George Gray, gave the Gray family national distribution experience that they used in marketing canoes.

A black-and-white photograph of the exterior of the Old Town Canoe factory. Wrapped canoes await shipment near the railroad.

Old Town Canoe Factory

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

The Old Town Canoe factory. Note the wrapped canoes awaiting shipment near the railroad.

An illustrated view of the Old Town factory appeared in the company catalogs.

Illustrated Old Town Canoe Factory

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

An illustrated view of the Old Town factory appeared in the company catalogs.

A black-and-white photograph of employees at the Old Town Canoe Company constructing canoes.

Finishing Work at Old Town

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Finishing work was done by hand on canoes built at the Old Town factory during the 1920s and 30s.

A photograph of excess dirt being removed by vacuum from newly constructed Old Town canoes.

Old Town Construction

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Prior to varnishing, Old Town employees used a vacuum system to remove dirt and debris that was left over from sanding, ca. 1922.

Benson Gray, a historian with the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association, is a member of the Gray family, founders of the Old Town Canoe Company.

Benson Gray

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Benson Gray, a historian with the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association, is a member of the Gray family, founders of the Old Town Canoe Company.

Illustrated cover of Carleton Canoe catalog.

Carleton Canoe Catalog

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

When this Carleton Canoe catalog cover was published in 1924, Carleton canoes were built in the Old Town factory.

The Old Town Canoe Company celebrated the end of the First World War in 1919 with a military-themed catalog cover.

End of World War I

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

The Old Town Canoe Company celebrated the end of the First World War in 1919 with a military-themed catalog cover.

A 1923 Old Town Canoe catalog cover featuring two women paddling solo.

Women Paddle Canoes

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

By 1923, images of women paddling canoes were prominent on the covers of catalogs produced by Old Town and other makers.

A before-and-after restoration of a 1927 Carleton canoe, which was built in the Old Town Canoe Company factory. Using the Old Town “build record,” the canoe was restored to the same colors and condition as the original. Restoration by Tom Seavey.

Carleton Canoe Restoration - Before

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

A before-and-after restoration of a 1927 Carleton canoe, which was built in the Old Town Canoe Company factory. Using the Old Town “build record,” the canoe was restored to the same colors and condition as the original. Restoration by Tom Seavey.

A before-and-after restoration of a 1927 Carleton canoe, which was built in the Old Town Canoe Company factory. Using the Old Town “build record,” the canoe was restored to the same colors and condition as the original. Restoration by Tom Seavey.

Carleton Canoe Restoration - After

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

A before-and-after restoration of a 1927 Carleton canoe, which was built in the Old Town Canoe Company factory. Using the Old Town “build record,” the canoe was restored to the same colors and condition as the original. Restoration by Tom Seavey.

Emily Schoelzel restoring a 1964 Old Town OTCA canoe in the Salmon Falls Canoe shop.

Emily Schoelzel

From Chapter 5: Wood-and-Canvas Canoes

Emily Schoelzel restoring a 1964 Old Town OTCA canoe in the Salmon Falls Canoe shop.

Lateen sail design illustration by Todd Bradshaw for an Old Town wood-and-canvas canoe.

Lateen Sail Design

From Sidebar: Canoe Sails

Lateen sail design illustration by Todd Bradshaw for an Old Town wood-and-canvas canoe.

A worker at Old Town Canoes puts the finishing touches on a fiberglass model.

Old Town Fiberglass Canoes

From Chapter 6: Synthetic Canoes

A worker at Old Town Canoes puts the finishing touches on a fiberglass model.

The old-line canoe builder Old Town expanded into the fiberglass market in the 1960s. This advertisement, for its Rushton model, claimed a weight of 18.5 pounds on the 10-foot solo boat. Cost was $195.

Fiberglass Rushton Canoe

From Chapter 6: Synthetic Canoes

The old-line canoe builder Old Town expanded into the fiberglass market in the 1960s. This advertisement, for its Rushton model, claimed a weight of 18.5 pounds on the 10-foot solo boat. Cost was $195.

Sometimes canoe manufacturers went to extreme lengths to tout the quality of their synthetic canoes. In this case, Old Town dropped a Tripper model off of the roof of its plant in Old Town, Maine, to show it could take a punch and more-or-less snap right back to straight again.

Old Town Gimmick

From Chapter 6: Synthetic Canoes

Sometimes canoe manufacturers went to extreme lengths to tout the quality of their synthetic canoes. In this case, Old Town dropped a Tripper model off of the roof of its plant in Old Town, Maine, to show it could take a punch and more-or-less snap right back to straight again.

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