| Author |
Message |
emerald
Member
Post Number: 3
Registered: 06-2005
| | Posted on Monday, June 28, 2010 - 12:37 pm: | 
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I was recently given this artifact, found in the bush south of Temagami, north of Marten River. It seems likely to have been the head of a hammer, possibly for marking timber. It is heavy enough to leave an impression in the wood if driven onto the end of a log.
I am wondering if anyone could identify more details about the object.
Thanks to Brian and members for a very interesting forum of information and ideas about Temagami.
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micmac
Member
Post Number: 103
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Monday, June 28, 2010 - 6:06 pm: |
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That is very interesting.
It is definitely a hammer head that was used for marking the butt end of cut logs.
I've been told the symbols were unique to a specific logging company, and someone educated in Temagami local history may even be able to tell you who the marking tool belonged to.
Very interesting find - I've heard of these tools but never actually seen one.}}} |
lorrain
Member
Post Number: 24
Registered: 12-2008
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 29, 2010 - 8:37 am: |
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Brian Moulder in Marten River is former M.N.R. and is a local expert in the history of logging in the region. I had a backround report completed by him several years ago and will try to locate it to help, otherwise you could probably contact him directly. |
emerald
Member
Post Number: 5
Registered: 06-2005
| | Posted on Friday, September 10, 2010 - 10:00 pm: |
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John Haegeman a local historian found that this hammer mark was registered to Cache Bay Lumber Co. in 1909. This was part of the George Gordon Co. (A.B.Gordon) that held limits in the Sudbury District from 1901 to 1946. George Gordon from Pembroke had registered a timber mark in 1888.“After the American Civil War in 1860, there was a great demand for lumber. The Great Lakes states started producing lumber on a large scale, especially in Michigan. There were thousands of saw mills in the area of the Great Lakes states and when Michigan eventually ran out of pine, the mills stood idle. The Michigan companies started looking for cheap labour and an inexpensive way to transport the logs. They looked north of the border into Ontario where there was plenty of pine and a network of rivers to transport the logs down to Lake Huron so they could be transported over to the Michigan mills.
“In 1870 it became a law in Ontario that anyone using our rivers to transport their logs had to have their log hammers registered. This registration contained the companies’ official letterhead and stamp hammer mark.”(MidNorth Monitor Espanola)
‘Registered Timber Marks of Eastern Canada 1870 to 1984’, is a book which helps to identify log hammers.
This hammer is likely from one of the camps north of River Valley. It weighs about 3 lbs, but apparently some of them were as much as 11lbs. |
Temagami general