Laninga's Travel Blog

Back in the day, the carpenter was one of the most important tradesmen at Ft. Vancouver.  He was responsible for building pretty well everything, from the buildings themselves, and cradle to casket. Compared to the fort itself, the shop takes up only a small space, but a lot of work was done here.  And all with hand tools, no power equipment during the early years.

This year, I have been trained to make presentations to visitors about the shop, the tools, and the tasks.  Very interesting, and I get to use the tools :)…. it gives great appreciation to the skills of the settlers, making such a variety of products with limited resources.

All dressed up and ready to work

Closeup of the foot pedal powered lathe

A good, sturdy and flat table is a requisite of the wood shop

The grind stone is hand powered too

On the far wall, many types of draw knives and hand planes

Raw materials, waiting projects

Additional projects, such as axles, wagon wheel, and ox yokes

Another view of the lathe area

Striking a cavalier pose in my period correct clothing