When traveling up Maine's Penobscot River in a
birchbark canoe, Thoreau observed firsthand the profusion of sawmills and lumber camps that comprised part of the "great machine" of modern industry steadily permeating the region's uninhabited wilderness.
This is followed by a main section focusing on the Native peoples of the eastern Woodlands, featuring popularized images of Great Lakes dwellings--various styles of wigwam constructed of bark and rush mats; a couple of interesting views illustrating ceremonies within the secretive Medicine Lodge; and the iconic and beautifully crafted
birchbark canoe. Two pages then present a handful of postcards depicting Northeastern Algonkian peoples, including a fine portrait card of Penobscot chief Big Thunder of Old Town, Maine; another of Passamaquoddy elder Mary Selmore of Eastport; and a group of Wabanakis, possibly Mi'kmaqs, in the Public Gardens in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
In fact, he has his eyes set on a
birchbark canoe that was made in Conne River for the government of France in the mid-1800s and is presently in Vienna.
In modern day New York State and on the lower stretch of the Niagara River in particular, the freedom once known by boaters seems as outmoded as the
birchbark canoe.
In mid-August, he set out through the Straits of Mackinac in a
birchbark canoe with French voyageurs employed by the American trappers of the Pacific Fur Company.
A beautiful
birchbark canoe that he made especially for Franklin is still on display at the Visitor Center at Roosevelt Campobello International Park.
Together they rowed a huge
birchbark canoe over wild rapids and hiked up towering mountains.
Voyageur: Across the Rocky Mountains in a
Birchbark Canoe by Robert Twigger (Orion, pounds 14.99).
The group, travelling in a 26-foot
birchbark canoe, left Lachine on May 19 and are expected in Thunder Bay on July 12.
Visitors to the online exhibit can stop at eight different locations along the virtual trail and find historical information, cultural notes on topics such as how to make a
birchbark canoe or hunt caribou, and stories related to the history of the Dogrib people.
birchbark canoe - a canoe made with the bark of a birch tree