Grand Portage in Cook County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
The Birchbark Canoe
Photographed by Connor Olson, September 5, 2019
1. The Birchbark Canoe Marker
Inscription.
The Birchbark Canoe. . American Indians developed the birchbark canoe hundreds or thousands of years ago. It would provide the technology that allowed the North West Company to span the continent.
"Canots du Nord" . The 24-foot north canoes could be portaged around rapids by two men. They carried a 1½ ton cargo and were used between Grand Portage and the Canadian Northwest.
"Maitre Canots" . Master canoes, also called Montreal canoes, were about 36 feet long and carried a cargo of more that 3½ tons, propelled by a crew of up to fourteen voyageurs. They transported goods between Montreal and Grand Portage.
Photo captions: Middle top: The raw materials are gathered: birch bark for the canoe skin, cedar for planking, and spruce roots for "rope” to tie everything together. Middle: Poles are planted at two-foot intervals, outlining the shape of the canoe. The birchbark skin is placed inside. Right top: Pieces of bark are sewn together with split spruce roots to form a single canoe skin.
American Indians developed the birchbark canoe hundreds or thousands of years ago. It would provide the technology that allowed the North West Company to span the continent.
"Canots du Nord"
The 24-foot north canoes could be portaged around rapids by two men. They carried a 1½ ton cargo and were used between Grand Portage and the Canadian Northwest.
"Maitre Canots"
Master canoes, also called Montreal canoes, were about 36 feet long and carried a cargo of more that 3½ tons, propelled by a crew of up to fourteen voyageurs. They transported goods between Montreal and Grand Portage.
Photo captions:
Middle top: The raw materials are gathered: birch bark for the canoe skin, cedar for planking, and spruce roots for "rope” to tie everything together.
Middle: Poles are planted at two-foot intervals, outlining the shape of the canoe. The birchbark skin is placed inside.
Right top: Pieces of bark are sewn together with split spruce roots to form a single canoe skin.
89° 41.085′ W. Marker is in Grand Portage, Minnesota, in Cook County. It can be reached from Mill Creek Road 0.1 miles south of Store Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 112 Mill Creek Rd, Grand Portage MN 55605, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, in the Arrowhead Region, in the Iron Range, and in the North Shore. It is also in the American Midwest, on the Great Lakes, and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, in the Great North Woods, on Lake Superiors North Shore, in the Western Hemisphere, in the Western World, and in the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France, Ruperts Land, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 22, 2020. It was originally submitted on July 18, 2020, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 337 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on July 18, 2020, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. • Mark Hilton was the editor who published this page.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. Photo of the whole marker. A wide shot of the marker and its surroundings. • Can you help?
