What Canoe is this, help needed?

[Don Read]

I picked this up the other day, totally unexpected. It popped up for sale, I was going to be in the neighborhood, and restoring old small boats is my passion. It was a display at a Range Rover Dealership, changing displays. Advertised as an antique, but wondering if it was a purpose built display boat, but the wood grain in the ribs and planks makes me believe otherwise. Dimensions match a 20's Old Town Ideal and a Chestnut Fawn Prospector??? The grain on the planks and ribs is sweet! The in wales, thwarts, decks, do not match, the rest, are generations earlier, than the planks and ribs. The out wale has an offset to be flush with the exposed rib tops and the out wale is much older than the in wale. It is a 16', about 35" wide and 15" deep. It has a very flat bottom, soft chines, and straight sides. The half ribs on the flat floor or uniformly tapered to the ends. I have built boats, we uses to change the thwarts and cut the sides for custom boats. Do you want it to accelerate faster or turn faster. This canoe has been repaired on many occasions. A copper nailed sheet has replaced a plank. The stem shows old tack hole from prior canvas. A small strip of canvas remains and it is black, all of the nails are rusted. Most of the tacks/nails on the planks appear high iron. The new stuff(decks, seats) has square drive stainless screws. Repairs have galvanized nails and copper. The hull is still stiff, but most of the nails/tacks look very rusted. I can pull heads off with my fingers that makes me very nervous. I don't care who built it, and it will be a perfect boat for fly fishing many of my local waters. If we can identify its builder or history, I want to make it as original as possible. All comments welcome thanks!

 

[Shari Gnolek]

Is there a serial number on the stem?
http://www.wcha.org/forums/index.ph...al-number-on-an-old-wooden-canoe-or-boat.791/

 

[Don Read]

Thanks! I will go look again, but I haven't found any marking.

 

[pklonowski]

More photos of details may help... the stem profiles, seats, and decks can be especially helpful. Do the thwarts and decks look like they may be replacements? Also look for any evidence of decals or maker's plates, which may only have left nail holes and maybe a shadow of a shape.

 

[Dan Miller]

Looks like one of the Huron builders out of Quebec. Possibly Bastien Bros.

 

[JClearwater]

I'm with Dan on this one. Planking style, flat shear, light outwale, rawhide seats - it's Canadian.

Just my 2 cents worth.

 

[Andre Cloutier]

Much modified canoe, likely a Picard with those half ribs. arrowhead decks are a giveaway its been modified and cut. Seats are not like anything that is usually in these boats. Pretty good smash in the stern. Good luck, i'd give it a good funeral on top of the burn pile unless you're looking for something to do over the winter.

 

[Don Read]

No signs of markings or numbers on the stems. There are a couple of old nail holes, so many it has a tag at one time. I have added more photos. The decks are definitely replacements. You can see on the inwhale were the decks used to be about 16 inches long from the stem or 15 inches not counting the stem. The current decks are about 12 inches. So no idea if the arrowhead deck style was original or if they cut the inwhale shorter. It is definitely a project boat, but I am looking forward fixing it up and paddling.

 

[Gary]

Hi Don,
I would agree with Dan on this one as well, looks like one of the Canadian builders, Huron similar to this one I restored 12 years ago. Carry thwarts, wide planking, and half ribs look a lot like this canoe which was a from a Canadian builder but not exactly who, sorry
.

 

[Howie]

Here's a Langford (Canadian) before restoration. Had arrowhead decks similar to yours.

 

[JClearwater]

Don,
Pay no attention to Andre - him and matches are best kept in separate rooms.
Jim