Wood and canvas canoes first appeared in the late 1800s, gaining favor as a more durable, low maintenance alternative to the Native American birch bark canoe designs.

Old Town Canoe Company is a historic maker of canoes in Old Town, Maine. The company had its beginnings in 1898, in buildings constructed in 1890 for a shoe business, and was incorporated in 1901. Old Town entered the canoe market as a builder of canvas-covered wooden canoes. The company’s plant was located along the Penobscot River.

Old Town is the largest and best known American canoe manufacturer. It was the leading manufacturer in the world before competitors such as Grumman pressured it by adopting aluminum for manufacture after World War II.

1922/USA