Tag: National Maritime Museum Cornwall

250 year-old birch bark canoe in Cornish barn to be returned to Canada

Enys birch bark canoe sees daylight for the time in decades

The birch bark canoe on location on the Enys Estate A painting by historical artist John Buxton showing similar birch bark canoes as they would have been used over 200 years ago

Enys birch bark canoe sees daylight for the time in decades; the canoe on location on the Enys Estate; painting by historical artist John Buxton depicting similar birch bark canoes as they were 200 years ago

National Maritime Museum Cornwall curators are working to conserve what may be the oldest birch bark canoe in existence, before it is sent back to Canada.

For over 200 years, the canoe has belonged to the Enys family having been brought to Cornwall by Lt John Enys after he fought in the American War of Independence in 1776. It is estimated to be over 250 years old.

‘Lt Enys sailed from Falmouth in a packet ship to join his regiment in Canada to relieve the city of Quebec, which was under siege from the Americans,’ said NMMC boat collections manager Andy Wyke.  ‘He fought many military campaigns and toured the area for his personal interest – discovering this canoe along the way. It’s incredible to think its legacy has been resting in a barn in Cornwall all this time.’

The canoe has been kept near Penryn in an Enys Estate barn for many years but this week it was moved to the NMMC, where it will be conserved, preserved and put on show from late January until it is  repatriated to Canada in September.

The canoe came to light when Enys family descendent Wendy Fowler called the museum to request they look at the canoe lying in the Estate’s barn.

Captain George Hogg NMMC archivist and trustee said ‘When we received the call from the Enys family to identify their canoe in a shed we had no idea of the importance of the find. We knew we had something special, but having worked with the British Museum on the artefacts and the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario, we now believe that this is one of the world’s oldest birch bark canoes. This is a unique survival from the 18th century.’

Canadian Canoe Museum researchers hope to identify where the boat may have been built and by which tribe.

PS – Duckworks has an excellent post explaining how birch bark canoes are made.

Hidden collection of maritime paintings on show at Falmouth museum

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RSMA Exhibition - Pamela Drew (1910-1989) Ship Building, Belfast 1946 oil on canvas.

Ship Building, Belfast 1946 oil on canvas – Pamela Drew (1910-1989)

A collection of paintings by members of the Royal Society of Marine Art on being admitted to the organisation are on show at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall at Falmouth until the 29th November.

This is a rare event, so catch them if you can.

Founded in 1939, the RSMA collects and promotes contemporary British marine painting, drawing, sculpture and printmaking, and is a focal point for much of Britain’s finest marine art.

Like other national art bodies, the the Society asks new members to submit one piece of work to its ‘diploma collection’, which today includes over 100 paintings.

The collection has been stored by the museum for years, but lack of space has meant it hasn’t appeared in public before. That’s a great shame if they’re as good as the sample painting above by Pamela Drew, but I guess this reflects the reality for museums – there’s always far more in store than the public will ever see on a single visit, or even on many visits.

The Watcher’s Cottage at Worbarrow – and is that Witch on the beach?

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Worbarrow, circa 1913-18. Click on the image to see a larger photo

Cottage at Worbarrow 2 Worbarrow Hill Cottage and coastguard station c1910 Cottage at Worbarrow

The Watcher’s Cottage and Coastguard Station, Worbarrow, photographed by Pat Leach and others

Sheila Leach has sent in some photos of the watcher’s cottage at Worbarrow, one of which shows a boat in the background, and I wonder whether it’s the Witch of Worbarrow, a rare Dorset crab and lobster fishing boat that can be seen at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall.

Witch has been getting some attention lately, as Boat Building Academy student Ian Baird has been appealing for information about her. He’s building a replica of the boat as part of his 38-week BBA course, as this earlier intheboatshed.net post and comments explain.

Sheila spotted the earlier post, and got in touch to let me know about the photos and also about a painting made from one of the shots. She says:

‘My husband’s family lived in the coast watcher’s cottage for many years. Husband Pat Leach took a photo of the area back in the 1950s or 1960s and a work colleague painted a copy. There is a boat in the background.

‘Pat’s grandfather, George Augustus Leach, is shown on the 1901 census as living at Worbarrow, and Pat’s dad, Alfred George Leach was born later that year at Warbarrow. Pat’s dad was later killed at Moreta in the 1939-1945 war.’

Thanks Sheila! Not having been to Worbarrow myself, it’s good to get a sense of place. Ian Baird will no doubt have a view about whether Witch appears in the photo.

On the subject of Witch herself, Ian has appeared on local television to appeal for information about the boat’s history. Once again, my thanks go to Chris Partridge of Rowing for Pleasure for pointing out the link.

A classic work on the beach boats of Britain is this book: Beach Boats of Britain.