Cost of a canoe in Ottawa 1910.

[Treewater]

Dan Miller nicely posted a 1910 catalogue of the Capital Boat and Canoe works. From page 9...a basic 16 ft canoe has five prices.
Varished Butternut .....$59
Varnished Cedar...........$50
Varnished Basswood..$40
Painted cedar................$40
Painted Basswood.......$35
There is a $19 difference between Butternut and Basswood if they are varnished. Clearly Butternut is expensive. In fact, the canoe jumps 50% in price.
There is a $10 difference between painted and varnished cedar. A 25% jump. I don't quite understand why the finish makes such a difference. I do understand why cedar is high. In fact, today cedar is the most expensive wood in the lumber yard among the commonly used woods. For sure, cedar logs bring nearly twice what hemlock or spruce bring and consistently surpass douglas fir. Butter nut, in my experince, like basswood, is only valued as a carving material.
I'm from the state of Washington. I have wood and timber values based on my life experience. The use of butternut or basswood (linden we call it) in a canoe (any boat?) is unthinkable. That the paint or varnish is such a big part of the cost is also puzzling to me.
What ever the reason, a brown painted basswood canoe I have and I see what was on the buyer's mind. It's nearly half the price. Interesting.

 

[Benson Gray]

I don't quite understand why the finish makes such a difference.

Painted generally means that more flaws in the wood can be easily hidden. This is similar to the comment on the bottom of page 15 in the 1910 Old Town catalog at the link below. "Any special color will be furnished to order at no additional cost except white, for which there is an extra charge of $2.00." White canoes require extra fairing since any inperfections show up more.

Benson

Old Town Canoe Company 1910 | Wooden Canoe Museum

woodencanoemuseum.org

 

[Treewater]

Painted generally means that more flaws in the wood can be easily hidden. This is similar to the comment on the bottom of page 15 in the 1910 Old Town catalog at the link below. "Any special color will be furnished to order at no additional cost except white, for which there is an extra charge of $2.00." White canoes require extra fairing since any inperfections show up more.

Benson

Old Town Canoe Company 1910 | Wooden Canoe Museum

woodencanoemuseum.org

Gotcha...makes sense. Thank you.
Now , how do I tell the difference between basswood and butternut and why the big difference in price? Found online. Butternut is a walnut but lighter and softer than black walnut. Somewhat rare today. Like basswood, butternut was a native tree in the Peteborough region of Ontario.
As I reasearch the wood in my canoe I'm noting that butternut, in Ontario and most of Canada I guess, is an endangered speicies. Most people don't think about this I suppose. These canoes being around a hundred years old, will have wood that may be endrangered or even extinct as a forest product. Being a timber grower in the Pacific Northwest, we in the forest industry know very well how the quality of trees/sawlogs drops constantly. I have slavaged buildings old buildings only for the wood. Here in TN I have poplar lumber that has all but disapeared. This is a whole subject.

 

[Treewater]

Painted generally means that more flaws in the wood can be easily hidden. This is similar to the comment on the bottom of page 15 in the 1910 Old Town catalog at the link below. "Any special color will be furnished to order at no additional cost except white, for which there is an extra charge of $2.00." White canoes require extra fairing since any inperfections show up more.

Benson

Old Town Canoe Company 1910 | Wooden Canoe Museum

woodencanoemuseum.org

You got that right Benson. I didn't think of that. I've not encountered it before. I'm working on a deck trying to decide if I'll repace or resurrect. It appears to be butternut which doesn't have a pronounced grain but as I strip the paint and clean both sides it becomes clear the deck is four different pieces. No wonder it was painted brown. Not to offend anyone..I'm sure the canoe gave a lot of good service..but it's just an all around cheaper canoe.