The Indian Canoe
A Brief Discussion and
Some Construction Advice
The Indian canoe must be as close to engineering perfection as most inventions are likely to come. At some point the initial invention was improved upon until it fit it's purpose perfectly...it had an ideal hydrodynamic form, it allowed a paddler to face the direction he was going, and the Eastern Woodlands Indian canoe could be made in short order from materials at hand in the boreal forest. Besides which an Indian canoe was small, light and fast. Even a 30 foot long freight canoe that could hold 18 people could be portaged by three men!
Although today's canoes are made of sturdy aluminum or fibreglass with a couple of polystyrene floats stuck into either end, they're essentially design duplicates of the old Indian canoes made of birchbark.
Dugout canoes
Birchbark canoes evolved from dugout logs which were still the preferred method of water transport in some cultures 500 years ago. The northwest coast tribes built huge dugout canoes from giant cedars and used them to hunt whales in the Pacific Ocean.
Eastern Woodland Indians in the southeast part of the continent were still using dugout canoes when Columbus crossed the Atlantic. Early settlers adapted them to sail so that they could transport goods up and down the rivers.
Because an Indian canoe was completely biodegradable few archaeological remains exist to date the crafts appearance in the prehistoric past. Nevertheless, a few years ago 85 primitive dugout canoes were discovered sticking out of a lake bed near Gainesville, Florida. Most were built between 3000 and 5000 years ago.
The wooden canoes had remained hidden and preserved at the bottom of the lake for centuries until water levels dropped during a dry spell. They were discovered by high school students working on an environmental project.
The canoes, likely used as fishing boats, were up to 22 feet long. Many had rounded sterns and bows. Tests on six canoes showed they were made of pine.
After the find was documented, the canoes were reburied in the lake bottom. Otherwise, they would have crumbled in a matter of days if left exposed to the air and sun.
State archaeologists said the documentation will be added to earlier data related to more than 300 canoes, including the oldest canoe found in Florida which was a 6,000-year-old craft.
Birchbark canoes
The Indian canoe was made by securing a skin of bark...usually birch...to a light wooden frame. Sometimes the bark was in one piece and pleated to fit the contours of the frame. Sometimes pieces of bark were sewn together and caulked with spruce gum to waterproof the seams. Designs varied according to local requirements and individual needs. Inuit kayaks, covered in skins, reflected the same principle.
I grew up in canoes. My parents had purchased a canvas covered cedar canoe, but after my grandfather's death my grandmother insisted that we learn how to make a real canoe from birchbark. Here's how it was done.
