Batteaux and Batteauxmen

Batteaux were long, shallow-draft boats derived from a French word for boat, averaging sixty feet in length, eight feet in width, and two feet in depth. They could carry as much as six tons of cargo while drawing only eighteen inches of water, which let them travel the shallow upper Roanoke River and the canal. Sweeps at the bow and stern allowed quick maneuvering in all directions as the current carried the craft, and batteauxmen also used poles to push them back upstream. A batteaux usually had a crew of five men. These batteauxmen were known as rugged, strong, and individualistic workers who by day navigated swift currents and rapids and by night guarded cargo and maintained their boats. They were also renowned for their love of games of chance and contests of strength and maritime skill.

Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina · United States