I have a 16' J. R. Robertson canvas covered wood canoe. The identifier on the stem is "1030 JRR CO 16". Can anyone help me find build info for this canoe?
Welcome, there are no known build records for Robertson or any of the other Charles River area builders so there is nothing more that anyone here can tell you. Can you provide a picture of the serial numbers? Thanks,
J. R. Robertson Co., Inc. was founded 1916/17, continued through JRR's death in 1931, and then under the ownership of Arnold Laskey until 1959. Your canoe very much matches the Robertson Lap Rib constructed canoe, as shown in the 1938 brochure (attached).
Thanks so much! The beam mentioned in the brochure (35") matches my canoe.
The date on the brochure is also consistent with what I know of the canoe's history. We believe it dates from the 1930s based on the following. It has been in my wife's family since it was purchased. It was her dad's family canoe. Her dad was born in 1931 (the youngest of three boys) and he grew up in a house in Auburndale, MA on the banks of the Charles River.
I've added a few more pictures of this lovely antique canoe.