GUNDALOWS
The technical term for the long, flat-bottomed boats used so successfully on the Shenandoah River in early Virginia history seems to have been pronounced with the accent on the second syllable as gun-DAL-los Regardless, of the way it was said, there is a basic likeness to the European term gondola.
The inland waterman who ranged the scrawny length of the Shenandoah River from it's sources in the upper reaches of the Appalachian Mountain range down to Harper's Ferry, in what is now the edge of West Virginia,built and used these home-made river craft
These versions of the crafty built along the Shenandoah River were often exceptionally large and were designed for that one ,maiden and only trip down river. They ranged in length from sixty to ninety feet, ten or more feet wide. The boat itself was so crafted that all materials used could be sold downstream as building materials or other uses. Many of them were built at Port Republic, the uppermost end" of the rover where it divides into North and South forks. Some were also built at New Market which was at the highest navigable spot on the North Fork.
A loosely planked raft of logs served as a base for the flat-bottomed boats, they were4 bound together with such planking and vines and sapling strips. They were built “bottom up” or “top down” on dry ground beside the river, and when the time came for the turning overof the basi, pre-fabed bottom portion it was a festive occasion for all with music making, dancing, parties and other celebrations. Once on the water the shallow craft was loaded quickly with with wood and other products from the forests, all manner of farm produce, saplings for barrel encirclements, edible mes s f for both man and beast and – most important of all and pig iron ingots from the many foundries scattered all along the Blue Ridge, Massanutten and Appalachian ranges as well as from he within the Shenandoah Valley itself.
Haste was important once the vessel was launched because much depended on riding the level of water moving in the stream. A much prized ability must have been that of anticipation of rain upstream and the river-lore knowledge of how it would affect flow down to the market place.
The entire crew - when everything had been sold in the Harper's Ferry market area, the crew would walk back to Port Republic or New Market where they would build yet another such disposable ship of commerce.
A.L.M. April 20, 2002 [c687wds]
