Well first, what is the time period of which you are asking?
If it's a time period when oil-cloth really isn't documented as something for shelters, then because of our modern restrictions on using natural brush to make shelters (Forest Rangers and Park Rangers don't like us doing that, very often), know that we are making an "allowance" while trying to get the proper experience...
<gee LD he just asked about pigment> Sorry...,
OK sooo modern boiled linseed oil tends to be acidic, and will rot your fabric. Now you can mix powder into BLO as a pigment. One of the most common was "Spanish Brown" which was iron oxide (rust). Another was umber. Ochre was a yellow, and it's suggested that the "fisherman's mack" was originally a linen coat painted with BLO and Ochre, for water resistance and in case the chap fell overboard..., the best to see him in the dark water.... YES you can try the pigment for cement. Mix a small batch, but you may want to check it with a pH paper to see if it's acidic or not. IF you decide to use it then you're talking about 30 days curing time. A couple of weeks for one side, followed by a couple of weeks for the other side. OH and hang it in the shade, outside, to avoid the BLO from spontaneous combustion on the fabric.
Which is why a lot of folks will get a paint swatch paper that matches an authentic color, and get the local Sherwin Williams store to mix them a quart of oil paint in that color. The pH is designed not to rot whatever is painted. Other folks like to simply use red barn paint. (DON'T use Rustoleum)
I don't like either, straight. The modern stuff has all sorts of chemical driers, and from what I've experienced, Rustoleum is the worse (for fabric that is
) Modern oil based paint, straight, makes the fabric very stiff and very brittle and it's amplified in cold weather. So what I do is "cut" the modern paint with some BLO. Up to about 50/50, maybe more maybe less..., so I'm using the modern stuff as my pigment. It seems to make the pH of the BLO better. Saves a lot of time and guessing too. The BLO at the warehouse store is sold to be used as an additive to modern oil based paint, to increase drying time. (I guess painters know why they want that; I think it gives a better finish in some applications)
I hope this long worded answer helps you...
LD