1939 OLDTOWN SAILING CANOE

This is a rare 1939 Old Town wood and canvas canoe with complete original sailing rig. After restoration, it should be worth at least $3,000.  You can have it now for $1000.

This 16' canoe was stored away in a warehouse for around 40 years, but the owner never got around to restoring it before he died. Someone bought the warehouse and its contents and put everything on eBay. He described this as "an old wooden sailboat." I have had it for 5 years intending to restore it, but age is creeping up on me!

The wood is not dry rotted. Three cracked ribs need replacing and after varnishing, the canoe will need canvas. Supplies can be obtained from Old Town and other suppliers. Instructions and advice on restoring a canoe are readily available on the Internet.

The center pole and spars are all in excellent condition. The sail is stained and aged, but it and all the rigging are original and make this canoe an exceptionally rare find! You can use the original sail as a pattern for making a new one. The double-ended paddles are apparently also original. They were covered with fiberglass at some time, but can be stripped and varnished. The only part that is missing is the wooden mast step pictured below. In 1939, it cost 40 cents with the screws! This can easily be made according to the picture.

In the left photo you can see the floor, backrest, thwarts, sail, leeboards, mast, paddles and oak keel strip. The right photo shows the forward seat with a hole for the mast. Both seats need caning. A rudder was considered a luxury in 1939. Most people preferred to steer with a paddle the way you normally do in a canoe.

Above are photos of the cracked ribs and damaged gunwales, where the thwarts were fastened. Seat frames and thwarts have been refinished. I have a 17' piece of 5/4 x 6" mahogany for the gunwales.

In the photos below are a new brass name plate, a CD with Old Town catalogs from the twenties until recent, and the original build papers which show the canoe was sold to Camp Equinunkt, NY in 1939. This is all included in the sale.

The unrestored Old Town sailing canoe pictured below was offered on e-Bay. Bidders offered $3500 but it didn't meet the seller's reserve.