E.H Gerrish obituary raises more questions than answers!

[1905Gerrish]

1. As I read this, I see another reference for Mr. Gerrish being the inventor of the wood and canvas canoe.
2. One of the best-known manufacturers of birchbark canoes?
3. Inventor and manufacturer of a new style of boat that is unsinkable? Is this a reference to sponsons?

 

[chris pearson]

Very interesting!!!

 

[Benson Gray]

This is great, do you know the name of the newspaper where it was published and the date? I've don't recall seen another reference to Gerrish making birchbark canoes. He was not mentioned in any previous discussions about the origin of canoe sponsons like the one in the first link below. This thread includes the oldest known catalog reference from the 1901 Indian Old Town Canoe Company and Thatcher's patent for invisable sponsons from 1908. The Gerrish catalogs from 1895 and 1898 do not appear to mention sponsons or any other unsinkable features. The word sponson appears to be a common nautical term that dates back to 1835 according to the Oxford English Dictionary. They list it as being "of obscure origin." The picture and caption at https://forums.wcha.org/attachments/13887/ is from a history of Old Town, Maine which was published in 1965 claiming that White invented sponsons and Chapman built the motors for his canoes. The article in the Old Town Enterprise from Sebtember 15th, 1894 below describes the use of air chambers in a canoe to prevent capsizing so the idea is at least that old.

Benson

When did sponsons become popular??

Just finishing a 1910 Kennebec (Morris hybrid) with sponsons. The sponsons are bigger than most that I've seen. When did sponsons appear in the marketplace??

forums.wcha.org

 

[MGC]

Obituaries should not always be accepted as gospel. They are generally written at a time when a family is in the throws of dealing with a very personal and challenging dynamic. They may (as this appears to be) written by a reporter who may or may not have had adequate time to interview, research, validate. I would take any such obituary with a grain of salt.