Family Canoe from 1911?

[tomrollman]

We have an old town canoe in our family that I thought my dad purchased new in the late 60s. I found the serial number on it today which is 17562 and when I did an AI search on it, it said that it was built in 1911? Can anyone verify this thank you very much

 

[Michael Grace]

Your canoe is much newer. The serial number is actually six digits: 175624, which places it at around 1965. Its featured are consistent with this timeframe. These features include the deck cutout shape and the type of builder's label. It looks like a very nice canoe except that it likely once had some rot in the tips which was cut out and that little triangle of wood capped on at each end.

 

[tomrollman]

Thank you! I left one digit off when doing the serial number search lol. It looks like it was built in about 1966 which alliance was what my dad always told me. He had it restored probably 30 or 40 years ago now it’s actually still in really good shape.

 

[Benson Gray]

Welcome and congratulations, the Old Town canoe with serial number 175624 is a 17 foot long, Otca model with a keel. It was built between January and March, 1966. The exterior paint color was lemon chrome yellow. It shipped on March 9th, 1966 to Akron, Ohio. A scan showing this build record can be found below.

This scan and several hundred thousand more 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/catalogs/old-town/records/ if you want more details. I hope that you will donate, join or renew your membership to the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See http://www.wcha.org/about-wcha to learn more about the WCHA and https://www.woodencanoe.org/pricing-plans/join to donate or join.

It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer this description doesn't match the canoe. Canoes with a family connection are always extra special. Feel free to reply if you have any other questions.

Benson