Welcome, the Old Town canoe with serial number 143552 is a 17 foot long, AA (or top) grade, HW (Heavy Water) model with red western cedar planking, open mahogany gunwales, mahogany decks, mahogany thwarts, mahogany seats, a keel, and a floor rack. It was built between December, 1945 and February, 1946. The original exterior paint color was bright red. It shipped on April 4th, 1946 to Gardner, Mass. A scan of this build record can be found by following the link at the attached thumbnail image below.
This scan and several hundred thousand more were created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others. A description of the project to preserve these records is available at
http://www.wcha.org/catalogs/old-town/records/ if you want more details. I hope that you will join or renew your membership to the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See
http://www.wcha.org/about-wcha to learn more about the WCHA and
http://www.wcha.org/store/membership to renew.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match the canoe. Canoes with an old family connection are always extra special. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.
Benson