MiCMAC 2-Fathom Pack, or Woods, Canoe with normal sheer and flat bottom. 



bottom were flat, but the top was somewhat rounded, 

 with the thickness reduced toward the outboard edge. 

 The cap was fastened to the main gunwales with 

 pegs and with short lashing groups near the ends, but 

 in late examples nails were used. The ends of the 

 caps were bevelled off on the inboard side, so that 

 they came together in pointed form. The cap usually 

 ended near the end of the gunwale but in some canoes, 

 particularly those that were nail-fastened, the cap 

 was let into the gunwale (see p. 50) so that the top 

 was flush with end of the gunwale. 



The ends of the gunwales were supported by head- 

 boards that were bellied outboard to bring tension 

 vertically on the bark cover. The heel of the board 

 stood on a short frog, laid on the bottom with the 

 inboard end touching or slightly lapping over the 

 endmost rib. The frog supported the heels of the 

 headboard and also the forefoot of the stem-piece, 

 which otherwise would have but partial support 

 from the sewing battens outside the ends at these 

 points. The headboard was rather oval-shaped and 

 the top was notched on each side to fit under the 

 gunwale; the narrow central tenon stood slightly 



above the top of the main gunwales when the head- 

 board was sprung into place and was held in position 

 by a lashing across the gunwales inboard of the top of 

 the headboard. The heel was held by the notch in 

 the frog. Cedar shavings were stuffed into the ends 

 of the canoe between the stempicce and the headboard 

 to mold the ends properly, as no ribs could be inserted 

 there. All woodwork in these canoes was white cedar, 

 except the headboards and thwarts, which were 

 maple, and the stem battens, which were usually 

 basket ash but sometimes were split spruce roots. 



The more recent Micmac canoes usually had no 

 more than five thwarts; this number was found even 

 on small woods canoes. However, old records indi- 

 cate that canoes 20 to 28 feet long on the gunwales 

 were once built with seven thwarts. The shape of the 

 thwarts varied, apparently in accordance with the 

 builder's fancy. The most common form was nearly 

 rectangular in cross-section; in elevation, it was thick 

 at the hull centerline and tapered smoothly to the 

 outboard ends; and in plan it was narrowest at the 

 hull centerline and increased in width toward the 

 ends, the increase being rather sharp at the shoulders 



61 



