Return to JRBF Home Page.
This Section of the website proudly maintained by Ralph Smith.
The Goal of this portion of the VCNS/JRBF Website is to present information which will be helpful to any individual or group interested in building a James River Batteau. Some of the documents included are from the early days of the James River Batteau Festival including early writings of our founder Joe Ayers and information from the Great Basin Dig of 1983. I have also included my personal experience having participated in 23 festivals and now built 4 batteaux, the most recent one being in 2009.
It is very clear to me that feelings regarding authenticity run very strong among the batteau community. It is also clear that there is no one boat style or construction method which can be deemed to be definitely "the standard for an authentic James River Batteau." Having said this I believe it is still a legitimate pursuit to help and encourage everyone who strives to build a batteau, to build a boat which is based on what we would consider "A James River Batteau". I look forward to additions to this section of the website from anyone who strives to further our understanding and enjoyment of this unique method of transport and this uniquely interesting period in our history.
Photos of the Batteau Anthony Rucker under Construction 2009.
New Batteau - iphoto gallery version- The batteau "Rocky Creek Wildfire"
Coming soon: Photos of the batteau James River being brought up from the pond after about 7 years in the water. This boat is now owned by the Rose of Nelson Batteau crew.
If you have any interesting photos, information, text, digital video clips, or anything related to this project please e-mail to construction@batteau.org .