Foldable Canvas Canoe? Looking for Info

[jlarrabee]

Hello Ladies and Gents,
I helped out a friend of my fathers sell a old Chestnut Prospector (Bill Riviere's Pole Paddle and Portage Canoe) and he had this very interesting fold-able canoe that he wants more info on. It disassembles into 8 Pieces and then has a removable canvas exoskeleton. No noticeable markings. Made out of a fiberglass similar material.

Anyone seen another like it?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks Folks

 

[Dan Miller]

That is a Linkanoe. Made only for a few years in the 1940s. Edwin Link was the inventor - he gained his wealth building airplane trainers for the Canadian and British air forces. The canoe is made of Micarta - the same stuff computer boards are made of.

Tom McCloud wrote a great article about Ed Link and his canoes that appeared in Wooden Canoe issue 160. (Back issues from store.wcha.org).

I have one in my living room (http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?13703-What-s-in-your-living-room&p=69377#post69377)

Dan

 

[Cliff Ober]

This:

https://books.google.com/books?id=niEDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA216&lpg=PA216&dq=linkanoe&source=bl&ots=aUA5NQJxoK&sig=2PARmbavPti9i70mlf3cRuYz0hA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwih-vrt0MjJAhUK44MKHQpMAWAQ6AEIMTAD#v=onepage&q=linkanoe&f=false


Cliff

 

[mccloud]

Dan is right: a Linkanoe it is. The canoe was built at the Link Aviation factory at Gananoque, Ontario. about 1945. Serial numbers are in dark red paint on the exterior of the hull, on each section, near where the 4-corners come together. In your pictures I do not see the two decks that are an integral part of the structure, plus a center thwart. The canoe was sold, disassembled, in two canvas sacks, and also with two 2-piece paddles. And the exterior was covered with a canvas 'boot'. So look around and try to find the other components that go with it. Tom McCloud

 

[Dan Murphy]

I have a Linkanoe which was among the ones sold off in Binghamton. It was used for fishing trips into Quebec, Canada. I do not collect boats and have a lot of stuff which we are downsizing. Is there a market for these canoes

 

[mccloud]

Typically one or two appear on eBay each year. In recent months there have been two. Sometimes the asking price is fair and at other times the asking price has been unrealistic unrealistic. Some have been re-listed 3-4 times because there have been no bids. Rarely is one 'complete', in the sense that they have the two storage bags, two sectional paddles, a usable skin, etc. There are a few of us who have them, have an interest in them, and paddle them on lakes, but the market is limited. Please try to find a good home for your Linkanoe. For more information about Linkanoes, take a look at Wooden Canoe issue #160, August 2010, which can be ordered from the WCHA on-line store. Tom McCloud.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Thank you for the insight Tom. I have considered donating it to a museum but need an appraisal and can't find anybody locally who could do it. I'm not wanting to cash in, just see it get a good home as you suggest.

Dan

 

[Greg Nolan]

I have considered donating it to a museum but need an appraisal and can't find anybody locally who could do it. I'm not wanting to cash in, just see it get a good home as you suggest.

I don't know abut getting a formal appraisal, but you might look at
http://forums.wcha.org/index.php?threads/linkanoe-serial-number.12368/#post-63168
where there is a bit of information on price.

About ten years ago, I bid on a Linkanoe at an auction in Dutchess County, NY. Someone else got it for $350 when I stopped bidding -- I wanted to hold my money to bid on another canoe that I was really interested in, up for bid latter in the auction. It appeared to be in pretty good shape, but with no canvas cover or any accessories. I talked with the winning bidder after the auction -- she really had no idea of what it was she bought, and I also talked with the fellow who put the Linkanoe in the auction -- he had paid $400 for it a couple of years earlier.

 

[Dan Murphy]

My Linkanoe is largely complete, only one paddle missing as I recall. My Godfather used it on fishing trips from Syracuse up into La Verandez park in Quebec.

 

[mccloud]

I'd say Greg is right on the money, so to speak, around $500 +/- depending on condition and completeness. Tom McCloud

 

[Dan Murphy]

Thanks for the advice.