Dad's Old Town

[boxbow]

Ser#173974 16 - I have had my Dad's Old Town canoe for the last 5 years. He bought it new (I assume) around 1965 when we lived in a little town in Iowa, not known for it's great canoeing. I was a little kid at the time, so I don't really know where he got it from. As a teenager and in my early 20's, I was the sole user of this canoe, but it was difficult to find bodies of water in the area that were not bedded and lined with limestone. It stayed in storage much of the time, and I tried to wreck a few cheap aluminum canoes instead while developing my handling skills during spring melts on local rivers and creeks. When my folks retired to a lake property in western Minnesota, it saw some use, mostly when my wife and I would visit and go for a float. We now make a point of taking it out on a local lake here in the UP, no motors allowed, for the annual fireworks display over the lake. Best seats in the house.
It's slightly faded yellow and in fair to good condition. It is unrestored and, to the best of my knowledge, complete. I hope to revarnish as needed and to recane or replace the seats. I might touch up the paint, or just rub it out, but I see no need as yet. This canoe has been in my life for very nearly as long as I can remember. It handles well and it is very forgiving. I've taken it out on Lake Superior with confidence, I've had it in very choppy and windy conditions on small lakes without worries. I consider it to be one of Life's Good Things.

 

[Greg Nolan]

The Old Town canoe with serial number 173974 is shown as a 16 foot long Guide model fitted with half ribs and a keel. The canoe was built in 1964. It was built using narrow planking (2 ¾” and lightweight ribs.) The original exterior paint color was yellow, to match a sample provided by the buyer. It was shipped to Herman W. Carlson in Ottumwa, Iowa on June 25, 1964. A scan of this build record can be found by following the link behind the thumbnail image attached below.



This scan and several hundred thousand others were created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others. A description of the project to preserve these records is available at http://www.wcha.org/ot_records/ if you want more details. I hope that you will join or renew your membership to the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See http://www.wcha.org/about-the-wcha/ to learn more about the WCHA and http://store.wcha.org/WCHA-New-Membership.html to join.

It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match your canoe.

Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.

It looks like you may have a canoe with its original paint and canvas. Re-caning seats is a fairly simple task (use the search function to find discussions on the task). Unless the wood frame is damaged, stripping and revarnishing the seats before caning should give you seats as good as new. With a new coat of paint (after a light sanding) and maybe touching up the varnish or putting on a new coat, your boat can be good for years of the kind of use you describe.

If you get a chance, we'd like to see a picture of your canoe.

A canoe like this is, indeed, one of Life's Good Things.

Greg

 

[boxbow]

We had it out in the Dead River Basin in Marquette, MI for the local Assembly held there just this last weekend. I was previously unaware of such events. My wife and I paddled in toward the shore as the rest of the canoes were putting in and it was a sight to be remembered. I'm unlikely to post photos soon due to an equipment shortage, but Dad's Old Town may show up in some of the photos taken at the event. I hope to see some shortly here. Thank you for the quick reply. Dad will be interested to see a copy of the build record. It's been a while since he got the hull wet.