ID help please

[Len Guralnick]

I'm trying to ID a boat with a s/n 59830. The stem also shows 17 as the length. Other interesting identifiers are that it has large decks with coamings, outside wooden stem bands that are spliced into the keel. The beam is 35" and the height is approx 12" with the keel. It is set up as a sailing canoe. It has what I think are called 1/2 ribs between the main ribs.
The bolts are not diamond head, but may have been replaced as some of the thwarts look newer than the rest of the boat. There are wooden plugs on the inner rails covering the seat fasteners rather than the diamond head bolts I usually expect to see if it was an Old Town.

 

[Michael Grace]

One possibility is a 17' Old Town Otca from the early days- teens maybe- with outside stems and half ribs. The countersunk bolts and bungs you describe would be appropriate, and the dimensions match. Serial number would place an Old Town in the late teens to early '20s.

This said, posting photos here would allow members to make an accurate identification.

 

[Dan Miller]

Attached is the build record for the Old Town canoe with the serial number 59830. Based on the information you provided, it looks like it is a good match. You can also look for evidence of the floorboards. The sail rig is not mentioned on the build record, so it is likely that it was added at a later date, which is not all that uncommon.

Old Town started using diamond head bolts around 1922.

Cheers,
Dan