The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North AmericaChapelle, Howard Irving
History
The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America
Chapelle, Howard Irving
Canoes and canoeing -- North America; Indians of North America -- Boats; Skin boats -- North America
The bark cover was lashed to the gunwales with group lashings in which
the thong was carried from group to group by a long stitch outside the
cover, under the outwale. The turns in each group were passed through
five or six holes in the cover and reinforcing piece, two turns of the
thong going through each hole. The connecting stitch between groups,
which were usually about 1½ inches apart, usually passed from the last
hole in a group to the second hole in the next. Some builders laid a
wooden measuring stick along the gunwales to space the lashings; this
was perhaps the practice of many tribal groups.
The lashing of the ends of the cover was passed through the stem
pieces; when the latter were not laminated, holes through the soft,
thin cedar were made by a sharp awl and an in-and-out or harness stitch
was quite commonly used. On laminated stem pieces the form of lashing
varied; in the _wabinaki chiman_ it was commonly some combination of
spiral and crossed turns; in the old form of high-ended canoe multiple
turns through a single hole (usually at the top of the stem-head)
were also used in combination with closely spaced long-and-short
turns in triangular groups near the top of the stem profile. Below,
in the forefoot, spiral or crossed stitches were used. The ends of
the outwales were lashed together with a close wrapping of turns in
contact where they turned upward sharply, and the caps were secured
there by two or more group lashings. The head of the headboard was
lashed to each gunwale by passing the thong through holes each side
of the headboard; these lashings were in a long group and were passed
around gunwale and outwale before the caps were in place. With plank
stem-pieces the ends of the bark cover were slightly inboard of the
cutwater line, sometimes protected by a rabbet.
The side panels were sewn on with in-and-out stitches, back stitches,
or a double line of either. The gores were sewn spirally in the usual
manner or were stitched with a closely spaced lacing.
Some of the old Algonkin canoes examined had what appeared to be a
_wulegessis_ just outboard of the headboards. No marking was found on
these and they were too far aft to protect the ends of the gunwales.
The bark was carried across the gunwales, under the caps, and hung down
a little below the outwales. On top, it reached from the headboard out
to the lashings of the outwales, forming between the headboards and
the lashings a short deck that may have been intended to keep dirt
and water out of the ends of the canoe. Sometimes a modern _wabinaki
chiman_ has a _wulegessis_, copying the Eastern practice but without
markings.
[Illustration: Figure 113
ALGONKIN CANOE DECORATIONS by Tommy Sersin (or Serzia), Golden Lake,
Ont., showing four sides of stems of one canoe. Indian shown has the
eastern headdress rather than that of the Plains Indian. Moose, bear,
beaver, and goose are shown. (_Sketches by Adney._)]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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