Tarka
Until we bought her 1 year ago Tarka was being
stored upside down under a tarpaulin in the previous owners back
garden! We are currently in the process of tracing her
origins, but this is what we have discovered so far:
Construction: Cedar & Bass Wood Strip
1892 Ontario Canada – she was built by The
Strickland & Co. Canoe co. Robert Strickland …
The company Strickland & Co - Lakefield Canoe Works, was
established in
1892 in Lakefield, Ontario by Robert Strickland and his son
George Arthur.
Robert Strickland was a son of Lakefield pioneer Samuel
Strickland and a nephew of the well-known authors Catherine Parr
Traill and Susanna Modie.
George had previously worked for the Lakefield canoe builder
Thomas Gordon as well as independently on a small scale. With
his father living in England, handling the sales for Europe from
the company offices in West Drayton, Middlesex the company
quickly became very successful. The company exported during its
first six years more than 600 canoes to England alone.The
company merged with Thomas Gordon Canoes in 1904 and became
Lakefield Canoe & Mfg. Co.
 Strickland & Co ...
The Strickland Canoe Co. was formed the year before in 1892 and
that following year the company suffered a great loss from a
fire which damaged the factory and equipment. The exact location
of the factory is not known, but the paper stated that the
Strickland building was located near the river - likely one of
the mill-line buildings on Water St. Some of the factory
employees were hired immediately at Peterborough Canoe and some
waited for the Strickland Company to re-open. In July 1904, the
Gordon and Strickland companies amalgamated to form the
Lakefield Canoe Building and Manufacturing Company Ltd. Forty
thousand shares were placed on the market at $100 per share. The
new company proposed building both boats and houses. C1900 she was brought to the UK by the Rowley
family of Birmingham. 1948 She was given to a local family Mr& Mrs.Warnes – who at that time owned the Weyford Bridge Boat yard
– she remained in their family up until last year.
Tarka has recently undergone over 200 hours of work as stage one
of her restoration.
It is our intention to continue to paddle her on the broads for
the foreseeable future. |
