Native American canoes

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Native American Canoes

Men making a birch bark canoe in Canoe River, Newfoundland, in 2009

In Native American culture, a Canoe is a boat that comes to a point on both ends of the boat. Rowers sit facing the bow and propelling the using paddles. Its light weight makes it versatile being used for fishing, trade, exploration, and war. Depending on the region construction of the canoes vary depending on the resources and intended needs of the location.. All Canoes had bases starting with wood. Some are made with Bark, Dugout canoes from Trees, or Skin Canoes from animal hides.

Cultural Importance

Native Americans believed strongly in the spiritual connection between all inter-workings of the world and thus would use all wood for canoes from trees that had fallen near the water. Depending on the use and need of a canoe they could be lightweight for travel or large to carry sometimes upwards of 60 people. Many of the canoes would have animalistic features that would help bring them good and safe passage. Canoe building was a great way to bring people together and the traditions of canoe building were passed down from generation to generation. They were commonly thought of as leaders within the community.

As Native Americans were people who lived off the land the canoes were important in sustaining life. They were used for transportation over waterways which some would call the "natural highways". This transportation was important as Native Americans began in the age of the fur trade with colonialists. Using canoes they would hunt a variety of animals for their fur which would be traded with Europeans, beaver fur being the most desirable. Since Native Americans did not trade currency they would use the trade for tools, ammunition, guns, and cloth.

In addition to trade for those in coastal communities, fishing was an important part of sustainability for indigenous peoples. they would use spears, bows, and hooks manufactured from animal resources to hunt for fish on canoes. Usually, only two or three people would go out to hunt or fish on a canoe being about 18-20 feet long. Smaller styles would be used for salmon fishing. Commonly larger canoes would be used for walrus, whales, seals, or porpoises.

In the Pacific Northwest, the canoes are seen as parts of their communities not, just tools and are treated as such. In the late spring, communities come together to celebrate the awakening of the canoe for the upcoming season that they will be used. There is a dinner, and all members of the community join and participate in dance and song. when the season comes to a close the same occurs but instead they are putting the canoes to sleep. After they are put to rest they will stay dry on land and protected, not to be used until the next season.

Canoe Styles

Dugout Canoes

See also: Dugout canoe

Dugout Canoe used on Connecticut River 1710-1745.

A common style across North America was the Dugout canoe. The trees were chopped near the shore so that it was easily moved into the river. Large trees were stripped of their bark, burned on the inside, and scraped down. After they scraped and sculpted it they would fill it with water and use hot stones to boil the water softening the inside of the canoe making it easier to scrape and sculpt reading the process until the inside is hollow

Dugout canoes in the Northeast could hold up to 12 people and were made commonly of Cedar, Pine, Sycamore, Chestnut or Cottonwood. While those in the Pacific Northwest were much larger and could hold up to 60 people. Throughout the winter Dug out canoes are submerged under the water in shallow ponds that freeze over. This is done so that when winter rolls around if water is trapped inside the canoe it dent cause it to crack as it freezes above ground as well as protects against rot and termites. Dugout canoes were versatile in their use mainly used for fishing. Native Americans in the Northeast used them to fish for swordfish since the fish would try to attack fishermen and the canoes would protect them from the sharp sword.

Skin Canoes

Canoes constructed of skin were used mostly in small water systems and for shorter water travel. They could be used for hunting seals or porpoises as well as other shoal water fish. The canoes consisted of three to four hides commonly being moose but could also be caribou, seal, or walrus depending on the local resources. The construction of the canoes started with a wooden frame interior and cover in the hide on the outside. The hides would be layered with Charcoal and Balsam in between the seams. Each hide would then be laid lengthwise and drastically overlapped and sewn together the caulked with tallow and gum.

Bark Canoes

See also Bark canoe

Ojibwe people use a bark canoe in Minnesota - Ontario area, circa 1910

Bark canoes were typically constructed from paper birch or pine, elm, cedar, and spruce have been known to be used. A wood framing would be built to support the bark connected to the inner ribs of the canoe. Construction would take about two weeks starting with the stripping of the bark in sheets from trees in summer. The sheets would be flatted and the frame built on top would keep its shape. The wood was steamed to be more malleable for construction. Similar to the Skin canoes the seams were caulked with gum and tallow to make them water tight.

The canoes were known for their large carrying capacities and lightweight making them suitable for rivers and lakes within North America. Bark canoes would sit higher on the water making it better for shallow waters while still being able to have larger carrying capacities. Depending on the size some were used for hunting while others were used for trade such as fur

References

This article "Native American canoes" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Native American canoes. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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