Fig. A.
The simplest kind of canoe is made of canvas, and for the purpose of a novice in the graceful art of paddling it is just as serviceable as a more expensive boat. Very little material is required to construct one, and the cost, including everything, will not exceed $12. First procure two strips of pine board 12¾ feet by 2 inches by ¾ of an inch; a bunch of oak strips 1¼ by ½ inch, and about 4 feet long; a bunch of pine strips 12 feet long by 1¼ by ½ inch; and a piece of spruce 12 feet long by 2 inches by 1-1/8 inch. This last piece is to be used for the keel, to the ends of which are fastened the stem and stern posts. These are both alike, and should be sawed out of a pine plank in the curved shape displayed in Fig. A. Lay out your curve on the plank in pencil first, then saw to the line, and level the edge, so that the prow will slip through the water easily. Next, saw into both ends of your keel piece, insert the stem and stem pieces; then plane the keel piece so that it will come to a point both forward and aft. Fasten these uprights to the keel with copper nails or rivets. They are better than any other kind because they do not rust.
Fig. B.
Next, lay out a cross section of your canoe on a plank, and saw this out. Your section should be 2 ft. 6 in. across the top, which is the breadth of beam of your canoe; it should be 24 inches high, which is the depth of the craft; and the side lines of the section, which will determine the lines of your canoe, should be gracefully rounded, so that the boat when finished will appear as in Fig. B. Now, then, fasten your section upright on the keel, and with the bow, the stern, and the breadth of beam thus settled, all you have to do is to nail your two pine strips (12¾ ft. by 2 in. by ¾ in.) to the bow and the stern. They will get their spread from the mid-section. The skeleton of the canoe is now complete, and the inside ribs may be bent on.
In order to make the oak strips pliable, boil them in water until you can twist them into any shape you choose. Then nail them to the keel at their middle point and to the gunwale boards above, sawing off the protruding ends. These strips form the ribs, and when they dry out they will keep the form they assumed when nailed on. All the nails should be of copper, and clinched when driven in; this is done by holding a flat iron against the points as they come through. There should be six inches of space between each rib. Next take your thin pine strips, which are of about the same length as your sheer planks, and plane them on one side only. These are now fastened to the ribs lengthwise, the unplaned side out, parallel to the gunwales, about two inches apart. This brings all the planking on the outside of the ribs. Be sure to have the protruding lines (after the canvas is put on) run fore and aft, and do not forget that the planking is brought down to a fine point at the stem and stern, and is securely clinched.
Fig. C.
The canoe is now ready to be decked. Fig. C shows about where the deck pieces should be fixed to form the cock-pit. They ought to be inserted about a quarter length of the boat from each end. The deck beams should be of one-inch square spruce, and as soon as they are clinched in you can saw out your mid-section, which is now of no further use except as lumber. As such it will come in handy for braces, etc. On top of your deck beams lay the cock-pit combing of 2 in. by 3/8 in. pine, putting in braces of triangular-shaped pine underneath as a support to and from the ribs. After all the ribs are thus securely fastened, turn your boat bottom upward and lay on the canvas.