Boat Name
Boat Use
Boat Type
Build Date
Country of Origin
Area of Origin
Boat Dimensions
Length
14 ft 3 in
Width
2 ft 11 in
Photographs
Description
The essential characteristics that the North American Indian sought for his boats were portability and capaciousness, as well as the strength to sustain the knocks they might receive from rocks and fallen trees. It was also an advantage if they floated when swamped.
The tools and materials available in the northern forests also had their influence on the evolution of the design. The skin of this canoe is cut from the bark of a single tree and is turned inside out. The lines of dark pitch are cuts made to facilitate the 'bending' of the bark to conform with the sheer of the boat. It will be seen that none of the slats have been sawn - for they had no saw - but have been split with an axe. The strips of bark used for the lashing is much appreciated by mice (canoes are often left in the forests for long periods when food for mice is scarce). The raised bows and stern are important for navigating in rough water but it is unlikely that the owners would ever embark upon the slaloms of white water sporting canoeists for they would not wish to jeopardize either their boats or their valuable cargo of pelts or food, and there were no wet-suits to be had at the trading post.
Although the requirements of today have changed and include strength to sustain the thrust of an outboard motor, modern materials and techniques have not been able to improve upon the boat, bearing in mind the original requirements.
Materials: willow and birch bark. Fastenings: strips of peeled willow.
Propulsion: paddle.
History
The date this canoe was built is unknown. It was built by Percy Commanda, younger brother of William, Chief of the Golden Lake, Algonquin Indian Reservation. It is an example of the Indian Birch Bark Canoe built in the original manner by an Indian craftsman, a native craft which is now extinct in the USA and barely survives in Canada. This is an art that is rapidly dying out on the North American continent.
The canoe has been given to the Museum by Robert E. Conn, an American citizen now living in London, who searched for eighteen months before he found the builder. Mr Conn ordered it to be made specially.
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