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River cane-historical references

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Hello all, I am looking for period references to the use of river cane as measures, spouts, knife handles (?) and etc. I would like to find some mention of them in original history’s or surviving examples from the 1700’s or early 1800’s. Thanks-Rocklocks
 
This is what I know, buts it’s only a year or two old history.
 

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Don't be upset , if you don't get a few replies on this subject from historical records. I been studying every historical record for 60 + yrs. , on anything I can read from first hand materials , and most small mundane references just aren't there. I think recording small day to day things , like gun stuff , and their accouterments , were considered too unimportant. I would love to know these details , but can't find any. ......oldwood
 
Y'all making me hungry. All I know about river cane is they make fine fishing poles, I did hear tell by the old folks on my mama's side, about making arrows and blow guns from river cane, mama's side of the family is Cherokee
 
There are two types of "cane" common in the US. One is a native bamboo called river cane that was widely used by native americans (Arundinaria gigantea) and the other is an introduced and often invasive cane from Europe (Arundo donax) that is often used for clarinet and saxaphone reeds, but is too soft to be used as a good structural material.

Sugar cane is unrelated.
 
Those are very cool! Can you tell us your process?
They’re not difficult to build if you have a small Wood lathe and well dried cane. I used to make cane flutes so I have quite a bit stored up that have cured/dried a couple of years or more. It doesn’t take that long, but the cane needs to be dry to work with as it shrinks. All the river cane was cut on family property in Louisiana. The plug I use is Easter Red Cedar, I have a bunch here at the camp. I’ll take a piece of cedar and turn it down on the lathe to the heart wood and use calipers to match the cane ID. Then I’ll use a little super glue to seal the two. I guesstimate where to cut the cane at an angle. Then use my adjustable powder measure and electronic scale to calibrate the length of the cane. I’ll make a pencil mark at the correct level, then reduce the length to that mark on the belt grinder. Doing this also heats the lip and hardens it. My measures will through an accurate weight of powder when filled level to the lower lip. I give it a couple of taps to settle the powder. And they’re easy to pour in the barrel.
 

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They’re not difficult to build if you have a small Wood lathe and well dried cane. I used to make cane flutes so I have quite a bit stored up that have cured/dried a couple of years or more. It doesn’t take that long, but the cane needs to be dry to work with as it shrinks. All the river cane was cut on family property in Louisiana. The plug I use is Easter Red Cedar, I have a bunch here at the camp. I’ll take a piece of cedar and turn it down on the lathe to the heart wood and use calipers to match the cane ID. Then I’ll use a little super glue to seal the two. I guesstimate where to cut the cane at an angle. Then use my adjustable powder measure and electronic scale to calibrate the length of the cane. I’ll make a pencil mark at the correct level, then reduce the length to that mark on the belt grinder. Doing this also heats the lip and hardens it. My measures will through an accurate weight of powder when filled level to the lower lip. I give it a couple of taps to settle the powder. And they’re easy to pour in the barrel.
That’s freaking cool. Thanks!
 
Hello all, I am looking for period references to the use of river cane as measures, spouts, knife handles (?) and etc. I would like to find some mention of them in original history’s or surviving examples from the 1700’s or early 1800’s. Thanks-Rocklocks
Where have you looked, and what have you found so far? I'm sure all of us would appreciate hearing about what you have discovered.

I have read a lot in the period literature, but I dang sure haven't read it all. One fortunate aspect of "The Information Age" is that so much of the material folks like us enjoy reading has been digitized and put online, often in a searchable format. As you read, take notes. Also read authors' reference lists, and look up their references. Sometimes you find some real gems.

With that said, I don't remember seeing anything written in primary references about cane powder measures. As brother @oldwood stated so nicely in post #4, references to the mundane articles are sometimes just not there. It doesn't hurt to look, though.

One thing I did find in William Drummond Stewart's Edward Warren is this: “…an over-coat of white blanket with a hood, a leather belt, a broad-brimmed un-napped white hat, my ammunition, and a rifle; a tooth-brush and a mane-comb which I thought least likely to break, were in my pocket, a butcher-knife was in my belt, and an awl was attached to my pouch, which, with a large transparent horn of powder and a wooden measure hanging to it, completed my equipment.” (page 51)

If you think about it, how would a backwoodsman hollow out a little wooden tube, if in his tool kit he had a butcher knife, an awl, and maybe a gimlet? It would be a lot easier to use something that is already tubular, and I suppose a small piece of cane might be mistaken for wood. Just speculation on my part, though.

There are some research publications (secondary sources) that mention cane powder chargers. This photo is from John Rice Irwin's Guns and Gunmaking Tools of Southern Appalachia (p. 86):

Irwin - Appalachian Powder Chargers.jpg

The second charger from the left is made of cane.

There was a nice, short article in The Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly for Winter 1990 (Vol. 26, #4) entitled "Collector's Corner - Southern Rifle Accessories" which showed several powder measures of southern origin. One was made of cane, and while it isn't pertinent to this discussion, there was also a charger made from a big alligator tooth.

It may be more productive to look for actual artifacts, although it may be tricky to date them. Some sellers like to make artifacts seem older than they really are. Anyway, I found a few. This really cool old powder horn from Barlow Antiques has a cane measure attached in a unique way:

Barlow - Horn & Cane Measure.jpg

If you click that link, it will take you to the website with a description and several more pictures. That little lobe on the base of the horn, specifically for retaining the powder measure, is something I had never seen. Incidentally, I would consider the proprietor of Barlow Antiques a reliable source. He indicates this horn is 18th century, and I would be inclined to believe him.

This horn was featured on the Contemporary Makers Blogspot :

Old Horn & Cane Measure 1.jpg
Old Horn & Cane Measure 2.jpg

There was no written description or documentation of provenance. They just called it an "Antique Powder Horn With Cane Powder Measure." However, they show a bunch of pictures. Click the link to see them.

This measure was shown on the American Longrifles (ALR) forum:

ALR Cane Powder Measure.jpg

Forum rules here prohibit posting a direct link to another forum, but you can hunt up the ALR forum and look in the Antique Accoutrements sub-forum. This topic was posted August 25, 2020. It will be worth looking up if you are sincerely interested, because there are more pictures to accompany a good discussion.

This cane measure is different. Most that you see, including all of the others shown here, use a natural node as the plug in the bottom end, with a small projection off the bottom for the lanyard. This one has a fitted wooden base plug (sort of like the chargers shown by @TDM , but not nearly as nice) that is held in with a tack through the side. The tack is left projecting, and the lanyard string is tied around it. Also, I had always considered cane powder measures sort of a southern thing, but this one was found in Pennsylvania. That doesn't mean it was necessarily made there, but that's where it was when discovered.

I'm sure there are more out there. I hope you'll share what you find.

Best regards,

Notchy Bob
 
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