Monday, October 15, 2012

Logging Museum/Our World

 Wood carving of a lumberjack, Algonquin Logging Museum

Sometimes it's good to look back a couple of hundred years to see how lucky we are to be living in the 21st century.  Many of the first settlers in Canada were farmers who spent the winter cutting trees, many off their own land in logging camps.

Visiting the Algonquin Logging Museum was like taking a step back in time to the logging days in the area in and around the Algonquin Provincial Park.

 Camboose shanty

Logging in the Algonquin area began in the early 1830s and was pretty much a winter occupation. In autumn, loggers cleared roads for hauling hay, provisions, and timber. They also built shanties such as the recreated one in the photo above. Would you believe 52 lumberjacks would have lived inside this shanty?

The shanty seen from a side, notice the log chimney and cedar scoop roof

No need for windows since the loggers were inside the shanty only when it was dark. Before dawn every day, they began "hurling down" white pines and didn't finish until after sunset. The cedar scoop roof prevented snow and rain from entering the shanty.

Central fireplace

 Inside the shanty, a roaring fire kept the shanty warm.

 A crude wooden stool


Bunks

Lumberjacks slept in their clothes, two to a bunk. There's no place for washing up so the "aroma" must have been ripe.

Wooden door hinge


More photos from Our World can be seen by clicking HERE.

44 comments:

Kerri Farley said...

That woodcarving is extraordinary!

Darla said...

Loved hearing how the lumberjacks lived in the shanty. Always enjoy your bits of history.

Darla

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh what a fantastic post I love the history and the photos.
I know my Great Grandfather lived in one of those I had no idea just how hard that would have been. Our ancestors were incredibly tough. B

MadSnapper said...

this is a wonderful piece of history. thanks for sharing this place. it really is amazing and that hinge is something i have not seen before. sooo glad i don't have to sleep on one of those bunks

Dianne said...

the fire place is beautiful

life must have been so hard

Liz said...

You are of course right! We should visit places like this from time to time to appreciate what we often take for granted. Thank you for sharing this... it does make one think and appreciate the "mod cons" we often don't appreciate as much as we should!

Anonymous said...

This is remarkable history, and I am sure glad I am in the 21st century!

Very glad to see your wonderful photos.

Jack said...

I agree with you completely. Regularly I say to myself or to a companion that we are very, very lucky.

Penelope Notes said...

Seems appropriate that a lumberjack would be carved out of wood. I bet these hardworking folk never dreamed how far this tree cutting thing could go.

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

I've never seen a building like that before. I thought too as I looked at the pictures, it must have stunk to high heaven in there. And the snoring, yikes!

Paul in Powell River said...

My god! - 52 lumberjacks and no showers! Imagine.

TexWisGirl said...

wow, what a gorgeous structure (now that it has aired out a bit!)

Tania said...

They did a lot of great work back in time. I hope these things will be well taken care of.

Happy week to you!:-)

DeniseinVA said...

I enjoyed learning a bit of history about logging. Great place to visit and your photos are marvelous.

Ailime said...

Belíssimas fotos!
Aprecio imenso a arte em madeira!
Grata pela visita ao meu cantinho. Ailime

RedPat said...

I now have the lumberjack song going in my head!

LONDONLULU said...

What an amazing museum! That woodwork is extraordinary - I can't imagine having to build my entire home from scratch, I'm glad to be living in 2012!

Pamela Gordon said...

My how things have changed! An interesting post. New Brunswick is well known for it's lumbering over the centuries too. Not so much these days but we still have lots of forests.

cieldequimper said...

I saw something similar in Saint-Félicien, Québec... Now, let's say that I wouldn't mind having this for a cabin (I'd add a few windows of course)...

The Cranky said...

What an extraordinary bit of history; thank you for sharing!

I can't help but think how claustrophobic and crowded that cabin would be.

Sivinden said...

Interesting reading and informative pictures, - great post!

Sylvia K said...

What a terrific post and photos for the day, EG! I love the history! It does do us all some good to look back at life then to help us appreciate how MUCH we have now!! Wonderful! Yes, I too, get claustrophobic just looking at the cabin and bunk beds!! Fragrant indeed!!

Carver said...

Interesting museum and I like the sculpture.

Gaelyn said...

Nice piece of history. I love visiting these types of places. But sure glad I don't have to live like that.

Rohrerbot said...

I've always dreamed of living in a log cabin. Beautiful.

Just came back from an internet free vacation and am catching up on your blog:) Hope you have a good week and it's nice to be home again.

Snap said...

When we say "the good old days" somehow I don't think we are thinking of this!!! Fascinating place I bet. The shanty is beautiful in its own way.

Lew said...

What a great job of carving! And the shanty roof is ingenuous construction.

eileeninmd said...

Thanks for sharing the history of the cabin and lumberjacks. The carved statue is wonderful. Great photos!

Karen said...

A great post! I have always wanted to visit that museum. Thanks for sharing.

Randy said...

Nice shots. That's a big shanty.

Janet said...

Tough work, but somebody had to do it!

Lowell said...

Fantastic. But I think you need only go back about 100 years. My mother's dad came to northern Minnesota from Sweden and hacked his way through the woods, eventually building a house and barn and a farm of sorts...but what a tough life. Only one stove in the middle of the downstairs...upstairs the beds were piled high with bedding to try to keep warm...

And the soil was rocky and it was winter most of the year! :-)

I agree. Living now is one hell of a lot better!

Michelle said...

Looking at those bunk made my back hurt.

A Colorful World said...

So fascinating! I'm glad to see the shanty and learn about it. Thanks!

Unknown said...

i can only imagine the aroma inside this log cabin with 52 lumberjacks.:p what a back-breaking life they had.

Indrani said...

This place is a kind of heritage site. Grand pictures.

Anonymous said...

The workmanship is fabulous!

Oman said...

i couldn't agree more, part of our present is because of our past :)

Stephanie said...

Quite the rustic time the type of lodgings they had in those days. An impressive sculpture of the logger.

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

Very cool piece of history!

Kay L. Davies said...

Wow, that wooden hinge is fabulous, and I love the roof of the building.
You're right, the aroma must have been something else, all those unwashed loggers, two to a bunk (for warmth, I'm sure).
Fascinating history. Loggers certainly played a big part in the development of BC, my home province.
K

Susan Anderson said...

Very interesting. Thanks!

=)

Rose said...

I always wonder how the early pioneers survived and did all they had to do. and often think I would not have had what it took to survive...

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

I like 21 st or late 20th century I like the computer.

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East Gwillimbury is a rural town less than an hour north of Toronto, Canada's largest city. My family calls me CameraGirl because I take my camera with me wherever I go.