Birchbark canoes have been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years,
and there are still a few builders practicing the age-old craft and creating
these wonderful canoes.
The WCHA has a large collection of books on the subject,
(see WCHA Merchandise) and WCHA member builders
listed in the Builders & Suppliers Directory, still build, sell and will teach you how to create these noble and surprisingly sturdy watercraft.
At the 1995 Annual Assembly in Paul Smiths, New York, the bark for a birchbark canoe was laid out by Steve Cayard and Assembly participants, and a Canadian Heritage Film on the construction of birchbark canoes was shown.
"The canvas covered cedar canoe evolved directly from the birch-bark canoes used extensively by the Indians of the Northeast. These bark shells, reinforced with unfastened planking and frames, represent incredible understanding of native materials and remarkable ingenuity in applying a few simple hand tools to a major project. The well-built birch-barks were delightful to perceive, easy to handle, and incredibly resilient. They served nearly all the requirements of the nomadic Indians, who seasonally traveled great distances through otherwise impenetrable wilderness along the myriad watercourses."From Building the Maine Guide Canoe by Jerry Stelmok.
Many of our Birchbark canoe builders offer classes and will teach you how to
create one of these marvelous craft under their guidance.
More information on birchbark canoe construction and other Native American Technology and Art can be found at the NativeTech web site.
The canoes on this page were built by Ferdy Goode, Hafeman Boat Works and Oldways,
all builders you can visit through the
Builders & Suppliers Directory.