Dave Maynard
Curious about Wooden Canoes
Looking for history of Old Town canoe serial number 118512 15. Thanks very much.
Serial number search
- Thread starter Dave Maynard
- Start date
Welcome back, the Old Town canoe with serial number 118512 is a 15 foot long, AA (or top) grade, fifty pound model with red Western cedar planking, open mahogany gunwales, mahogany thwarts, mahogany seats, a keel, and a floor rack. It was built between July, 1936 and January, 1937. The original exterior canvas covering was painted dark green. It shipped on August 12th, 1937 to South Hero, Vermont. A scan showing this build record can be found below.
This scan was created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others as you probably know well. Additional information about 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 https://www.woodencanoe.org/about to learn more about the WCHA and https://www.woodencanoe.org/shop to donate or join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match the canoe. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.
Benson
This scan was created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others as you probably know well. Additional information about 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 https://www.woodencanoe.org/about to learn more about the WCHA and https://www.woodencanoe.org/shop to donate or join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match the canoe. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.
Benson
Dave Maynard
Curious about Wooden Canoes
Thanks so much, Benson. Is there a way of knowing the price of this canoe in 1937? Just curious.
Michael Grace
Lifetime Member
A 15' AA-grade 50-pound model cost $83 in 1937. The floor rack added another $2 to the price. There were also crating and shipping charges for individual orders. These probably totaled about $10-11 given your canoe's destination.
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Dave Maynard
Curious about Wooden Canoes
Thank you, Michael. Very interesting. That's about $2100 in today's money. Still, a pretty good deal. All the best.
This model is still available today but the price has gone up a bit. The link below has more details.
Benson
Island Falls Canoe - Custom Made Wood and Canvas Canoes - Old Town Wood Canoe Parts & Materials
Island Falls Canoe - Maine made custom built canoes, canoe restoration, canoe repair, and canoe building classes. We also carry Old Town Wood Canoe parts and materials and we perform repairs on wooden Old Town Canoes.
