Further Explorations

No one site can provide everything there is to know about the history of wooden canoes. This site, despite my best efforts, is no exception. Once you are done exploring the Wooden Canoe Museum, use the links below to extend your search for information.

The Wooden Canoe Heritage Association

The WCHA is the one organization to belong to if you have any interest at all in wooden canoes, including their history, use, construction, and restoration. The WCHA's journal, Wooden Canoe, is a top-notch quarterly magazine.

Wooden Canoe Heritage Association

The WCHA Forums is an active community of wooden canoe enthusiasts, with all kinds of information and advice to share. Take special note of the Serial Number Search Forum, where records for canoes with serial number of those canoes whose records survive (e.g. Old Town, Carleton, Kennebec) can be obtained.

Museums with collections that include wooden canoes and/or wooden canoe-related ephemera

Adirondack Experience (theadkx.org). The ADX, in Blue Mountain Lake, New York,  has an extensive collection of wooden canoes and related ephemera. Search their online catalog of canoes, catalogs, and related artifacts: https://www.theadkx.org/collection/.

Antique Boat Museum (abm.org). Located in Clayton, New York, the ABM also has an extensive collection of wooden canoes and library/archival materials. Search their online catalog at https://antiqueboat.pastperfectonline.com

Canadian Canoe Museum (canoemuseum.ca) in Peterborough, Ontario, is Canada's national museum of canoes and canoeing, ranging from early indigenous bark and skin canoes and kayaks to modern day watercraft.

Mystic Seaport Museum (www.mysticseaport.org) in Mystic, Connecticut, has a number of wooden canoes, including an early Bowdish paddling canoe, several Robertson canoes, and several decked sailing canoes. Try to visit when the storage building is open to tours, as that is where most of the canoes are. Mystic Seaport Watercraft has been digitized, and can be viewed here: https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l036560/

Wisconsin Canoe Heritage Museum in Spooner, Wisconsin, is the only museum in the United States that is dedicated to collecting and interpreting wooden canoes. https://wisconsincanoeheritagemuseum.org/index.html

Other On-line Resources

Bark Canoes: A Digital Collection: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/899023e31da6401dae2bb50ebecbdff8