Old town # 93683
- Thread starter Mark Kerr
- Start date
The Old Town canoe with serial number 93683 is a 16 foot long, AA (or top) grade, Ideal model with red western cedar planking, open mahogany gunwales, mahogany decks, mahogany thwarts, mahogany seats, half ribs, a keel, a mast seat and step. It was built between February and March, 1927. The original exterior paint color was brown to match a sample that was provided. It shipped on March 30th, 1927 to Inwood-on-the-Hudson, New York City. 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 as you probably know well. 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 http://www.wcha.org/store/membership to join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer this description doesn't match the canoe. Feel free to reply if you have any other questions. Good luck with the restoration,
Benson
This scan and several hundred thousand more were created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others as you probably know well. 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 http://www.wcha.org/store/membership to join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer this description doesn't match the canoe. Feel free to reply if you have any other questions. Good luck with the restoration,
Benson
OP
OP
Mark Kerr
Curious about Wooden Canoes
Thanks Benson. I will have to look harder at the number. It is very difficult to see. This canoe has all ash woodwork and does not have a mast seat. I'm not sure what the step means. Also the deck has caps on the rails that I have not seen before. I'll post a picture of these when I get a chance.
Please post some pictures of the serial numbers from each end and the deck shape. The picture below shows a mast seat and step from that era. Short rail caps on the decks are frequently found on Kennebec canoes and on other builders' canoes occasionally. Thanks,
Benson
Benson
The Old Town canoe with serial number 93633 is a 16 foot long, CS (common sense or middle) grade, Yankee model with red Western cedar planking, open spruce gunwales, oak decks, oak thwarts, oak seats, and a keel. It was built between February and May, 1927. The original exterior paint color was dark green. It was shipped on May 12th, 1927 to Land O' Lakes, Wisconsin. A scan of this build record can be found below.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer this description doesn't match the canoe. The deck decal is clearly new and the short rail caps don't look original either. Feel free to reply if you have any other questions.
Benson
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer this description doesn't match the canoe. The deck decal is clearly new and the short rail caps don't look original either. Feel free to reply if you have any other questions.
Benson
Michael Grace
Lifetime Member
HI Mark. People do all sorts of strange things to old boats ("no accounting for taste"). Probably they thought this looked good. Can't think of any other reason unless it was used to cover up some kind of defect(s).
I'm curious about your statement regarding caps at the transom. If your canoe is a square stern, then it seems that you still don't have the proper build record. The Yankee shown about would be a traditional double-ended canoe, which of course means no transom.
I'm curious about your statement regarding caps at the transom. If your canoe is a square stern, then it seems that you still don't have the proper build record. The Yankee shown about would be a traditional double-ended canoe, which of course means no transom.
Some people like the look of short rail caps and they were very popular in the early 1900s. Most Kennebec canoes have them but they have also appeared on some Morris, Carleton, and Old Town canoes. The picture at https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Kennebec_deck.jpg shows them on a Kennebec and the two pictures below show them on Carleton canoes from the teens. My guess is that they were added to your canoe after it left the factory.
Benson
