While we're talking about working around structures, especially those that
sit on piers (brick, bois arc, stone or whatever), I'd like to ask if
anyone knows of an example of a house on brick piers that had a "basement"
added years after the original construction. I am looking for a report
that documents this type of remodeling in the early 19th century.
I think I'm working on a structure like this. It appears to have originally
stood on brick piers, about 3 feet tall, then, it appears that the owner dug
down beneath the building, leaving the brick piers and the soil immediately
beneath them in place, in order to create a first floor low enough to allow
head room to walk around under the original wood floor. Once the
"basement" was dug deep enough, they put in a herring bone brick floor, and
extended brick walls up the excavated "basement" until they got to ground
level, then they cantilevered the brick outward to create a brick infill
wall between the original brick piers.
This brick infill wall between the original brick piers, had pocket windows
built right into it, so the windows when open slid into voids in the brick
walls.
I've been trying to use Harris matrix thinking to sort out this peculiar
brick foundation but would love to find some other examples of this type of
remodeling.
Thanks in advance for any help.
P.S. to Skip, I would NEVER, EVER call Arkansas clays inferior, so please
tell me, at that Hollywood Plantation, does the brick walled basement and
the brick piers date to the same building phase?
Linda Derry
Site Director
Old Cahawba
719 Tremont St.
Selma, AL 36701
ph. 334/875-2529
fax. 334/877-4253
[log in to unmask]
-----Original Message-----
From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Leslie
C. "Skip" Stewart-Abernathy
Sent: Monday, August 06, 2012 11:55 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Bois d'Arc Log Foundation
I strongly resent that remark about Arkansas clays possibly being inferior
harumph harumph harumph. The Acme Brick Co. of Malvern is churning out
kaziillions of bricks at this very minute, and there are brick piers and
chimneys at the current location of Arkansas Post (AP National Memorial)
dating to the late Spanish period. Some of the ugliest 20th century dishes
ever made were spewn out by the Camark factory in Camden into the
1950s--hope it mostly goes into bottomless land fills, myself. So if folks
wanted bricks in my fair state they could have had them. For example, the
Taylor family at Hollywood Plantation on Bayou Bartholomew in Drew Co (edge
of Gulf Coastal
Plain) had a room-sized brick walled basement, brick piers, brick chimney,
etc. that likely date to the building of the 2 story log house that has been
dendro-dated to 1843. So there!
09:25 AM 8/6/2012, you wrote:
>Pete,
>
>Interesting. Here in the Black Belt of Alabama , we have no rock
>either, but they were making brick before they were able to set up saw
>mills to make clapboards. So our early townsite (c. 1819, 1820) had
>only log cabins and brick buildings and probably some brick piers &
>chimneys. Of course wood piers and wood chimneys were used in the
>region also, but I am curious why ya'll aren't mentioning brick piers
>and chimneys. Was the local clay not suitable for bricks? Just curious.
>
>
>Linda Derry
>Site Director
>Old Cahawba
>719 Tremont St.
>Selma, AL 36701
>ph. 334/875-2529
>fax. 334/877-4253
>[log in to unmask]
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
>Pete Gregory
>Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2012 3:47 PM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: Bois d'Arc Log Foundation
>
>I'm sort of following up on Skip Abernathey. I agree it's good you are
>dealing with standing structures. He is right about the La. flatlands
>(floodplains) which are virtually rockless! Still people werre still
>building "cat" (balls of mud and moss) and "rabbit" (rabets or slats of
>split wood and sticks) chimneys here in the 1960's. That was about the
>end of it. There are very few left to see that were done correctly.
>The lower sills sat on the wooden blocks which had sill wide tops and
>rapered away from the sills towards the bottoms so as not to rot the
>blocks with water accumulations. Sandstone block was hauled for miles
>and were preferred where they could get them. Sandstone was the only
>large stone available. Rarely fireplaces were stone chimneys also. The
>fireplaces had mud walls and floors, I've seen one made in a arc with a
>crosscut saw mailed to hold up the arc! The pinning occurred more
>commonly in the very early piece sur piece hewn log cabins built by the
>French here and in Canada. The logs in the walls were pinned in several
places.
> There is a dissertation at LSU Baton Rouge by Martin Wright
>titled Log Culture in North La. as I recall.
>It was done in the 1950's and shows the variety and complexity of both
>double pen and single pen structures hereabouts (Winn Parish). It might
>really help you out. You might try the Canadians ot Jay Edwards fot
>information on French log structures.
> Pete Gregory Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, LA.
>
>________________________________________
>From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Leslie C.
>"Skip" Stewart-Abernathy [[log in to unmask]]
>Sent: Saturday, August 04, 2012 2:15 PM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: Bois d'Arc Log Foundation
>
>I'm delighted y'all are working around standing structures--so much
>data available. I'm impressed that y'all's sills are pinned together--a
>nice touch. The sandstone chimney sounds great, too. Too often that
>and some vague patterns of piers are left, and then somebody swipes the
>chimney stones for a patio. I've only seen a few mud cat chimneys and
>only in the flattish parts of Arkansas but there is pretty good
>documentation of them being used at least to begin with in the bumpy
>parts, too. To my knowledge, there are no surviving first generation
>rough built log cabins with plank roofs of course, though there are
illustrations.
>
>Following up on Linda Derry (who needs photos?! when we're dealing
>with the tiny sample of surviving wooden structures from the 19th and
>early 20th centuries--it's all speculation about what "typical" was), I
>agree with (about anything) she says. As for Arkansas, we have two
>major regions for architectural materials for local builders to use
>before the RR comes in after the 1870s. These are the bumpy parts of
>the Ozark and Ouachita uplands where slabs of sandstone and/or
>limestone are conveniently poking out of the ground somewhere nearby,
>and the flattish to dead flat Gulf Coastal Plain and Mississippi Delta
>where there's nought but gravel (both areas offer clays for bricks if
>one is up scale). However, the varieties of forms of structures
>actually built (for which there is evidence) can be found anywhere across
the state.
>
>So one usually sees upland structures (house and outbuildings) sitting
>on stone piers, and lowland structures on wood blocks (cypress and
>locust --can't remember seeing oaks really) or replacement brick and
>later pre-cast concrete piers. In either region, one sees sills and
>joists of rough hewn logs or massive circular sawn dimensional (sort
>of) lumber (steam-powered circular saws were available state-wide after
>1840). There is often variation within farmsteads based on function of
>structure with house getting most substantial, although outbuildings
>built after the house and first generation outbuildings may actually
>have better piers and wood "under carriage".
>
>Above the support structure anything in wood is possible to find in any
>region: all log, post and beam, balloon frame (various versions), even
>box frame (no studs), and of course combinations as houses or
>outbuildings get added rooms or work spaces. And in about any form from
>single pen to open central passage to whatever.
>
>And yes, bodark evidently had it's last refuge in a small region in NE
>Texas and into the nearby Ouachitas in Arkansas. According to David
>Jurney as elaborated by Frank Schambach (the tie to the bodark bow
>trade is significant), the huge "horse apple" fruits were inedible
>after the decline of the megafauna and thus the seeds for replacement
>trees were not being distributed naturally any more. So the range was
>becoming more and more restricted until 19th century folks started shipping
seeds around.
>
>This is likely way more than you wanted, but one of my favorite things
>to do always has been to explore farmsteads. I've been fortunate to
>have been doing it for about 50 years now. Thanks for the chance to
babble.
>
>
>
>
>At 03:51 PM 8/2/2012, you wrote:
> >We are currently conducting excavations at a farmstead site here in
> >North Texas around a structure constructed around 1870. The structure
> >associated with this farmstead, was an ell-shaped 3 room house. It
> >utilized bois d'archalf notched logs as the beams for the foundation,
> >and each log was held at the corners with a wood pin through the
> >notches. the logs rest on bois d'arcpiers, and it has a sandstone
> >rock chimney, that was repaired in the early 20th century with brick
> >and eventually phased out for a gas stove. Resting perpendicular to
> >the logs, were joists that were nailed with square-cut nails to the logs.
> >Then tongue and grove floorboards were nailed to the joists with
> >square-cut nails. The structure itself was frame. As of right now
> >we are aware of a second structure that utilized a similar foundation
> >nearby, however they seem to be fairly unique. We were wondering if
> >anyone else has encountered this type of foundation before or maybe
> >able to look as some photos and provide insight.
> >
> >We also had some general questions that pertain to this type
> >foundation, we were hoping some might have some insight on.
> >
> >Would a frame house sitting on the above described foundation
> >expected to have a level foundation? This foundation drops 10 cm from
> >the NE corner of one room to the SE corner of the adjacent room. We
> >have some ideas and additional questions, and we would be happy to
> >share some photos in a pdf, off list with anyone who might have some
> >insight into some of the questions we have about the foundation. Thanks.
> >--
> >Cody S. Davis, RPA
> >Project Manager
> >AR Consultants, Inc.
> >805 Business Parkway
> >Richardson, TX 75081
> >214.368.0478 (office)
> >214.221.1519 (fax)
> >www.arc-digs.com
> >
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>
>Mr. Leslie C. "Skip" Stewart-Abernathy, Ph.D.
>Arkansas Archeological Survey
>Winthrop Rockefeller Institute
>Petit Jean Mountain
>1 Rockefeller Drive
>Morrilton, AR 72110
>501 727-6250, cell 479-264-8149
>email: [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
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Mr. Leslie C. "Skip" Stewart-Abernathy, Ph.D.
Arkansas Archeological Survey
Winthrop Rockefeller Institute
Petit Jean Mountain
1 Rockefeller Drive
Morrilton, AR 72110
501 727-6250, cell 479-264-8149
email: [log in to unmask]
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