old town canoe 17

rdc

New Member
I just received an old town canoe w/sponsons and found the serial # 107438 17.
Any info from old town archives on the history?
Thank you,
rdc
 
The Old Town with serial number 107438 is a 17 foot long, CS (common sense or middle) grade, HW (heavy water) model with red Western cedar planking, open spruce gunwales, birch decks, birch thwarts, birch seats, a keel, and sponsons. It was built between September, 1930 and March, 1931. The original exterior color was dark green. It shipped on April 1st, 1931 to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A scan of this build record can be found by following the link at the attached thumbnail image 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/ot_records/ if you want more details. I hope that you will join or renew your membership to the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See http://www.wcha.org/about-the-wcha/ to learn more about the WCHA and http://store.wcha.org/WCHA-New-Membership.html to join.

It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match your canoe. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.

Benson
 

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Thank you very much Benson.
So, what are the sponsons made of and any history of their development?
Then, any book or source to suggest for renovation?
I know nothing about recanvas-ing but have some experience w/ epoxy and West System.
Take care,
rdc
 
Sponsons began to appear on canoes shortly after 1900, marketed as a safety measure.

On Old Town canoes they are cedar strips covering small wooden forms or bulkheads, covered by filled canvas in the same manner that filled canvas covers the hull.

Page 172 of The Wood and Canvas Canoe by Jerry Stelmok and Rollin Thurlow illustrates sponson construction and discusses how to recanvas them.

Greg
 
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