Need help identifying canoe

cpyne

New Member
Hi,

Can anyone help identify this canoe? I was told by the person who gave it to me that it is an early 1900s Old Town, but I'm not sure if that is accurate or not. I don't see a serial number or other identification anywhere.

thanks
Charlie
 

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Charlie -

It's not an Old Town, but rather something more obscure (which translates to "interesting"). Your canoe appears to be made by the C.P. Nutting company which operated from 1884 into the 1940s. Nutting was based on Prospect Street in Waltham, MA, and was one of a number of builders along the Charles River that competed particularly for a booming business in that region, but also much wider as well. Nutting built an estimate 150 canoes per year, ran a canoe livery where dozens of canoes were stored on the Charles, and at the boathouse also operated Nutting's Dance Hall beginning in 1914.

Some of the features that say Nutting are the shape of the deck cutouts, the circular flagstaff holders on the decks, and the un-tapered ribs (many of the Charles River-area builders kept their ribs full width, while many other companies tapered the width of each rib from full in the bottom of the canoe to significantly narrower where it meets the gunwales). Your canoe probably originally had a maker's tag on its bow deck. You might find a small nail hole at each end of where a small rectangular tag once was.

Your canoe appears to be in very good structural condition - no obvious rot or breaks, and the parts seem to all be there. However, it appears to have been fiberglassed. Search these threads for discussions on the use of fiberglass on what would have originally been canvas-covered canoes, and for tips on safe (for the canoe) and effective fiberglass removal. Also, the knobby bits atop one of the thwarts are not original.

Michael
 
Last edited:
Thanks so much for the info. I will update the thread if I discover anyway additional about this canoe

Thanks
 
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