The Earliest Colonial Shelters
The Mayflower had never intended on landing in New England. The Pilgrims had planned on settling in the much warmer Virginia where they could be close to the primary English colony and would have access to at least rudimentary civilization. They were English Seperatists, people who had broken from the Church of England and sought to Purify their Church (hence Puritans). Originally they had settled in Holland, but wished to remain English and so left for the New World where their countrymen had established their Virginia settlement at Jamestown (after their first settlement at Roanoke had been massacred by ``friendly`` local natives). Unfortunately, the Mayflower missed her mark badly, and landed on November 21 in the wilderness off Cape Cod at a place which would be known as Provincetown. They soon discovered a harbor which seemed a good place for a colony, and this they named Plymouth after their point of departure in England. It was December 21.
The early colonists found themselves in country facing the bitter New England winter, without housing for themselves. Living in tents at first, the settlers realized they could not take the time to build themselves fine clapboard houses, and the log cabin had not yet come to America (the log cabin was a Swedish invention, although the Russians used something similar, and would not come to America until Swedes sent colonists to settle.) The need for housing more substantial than a tent was critical, lest the colonists freeze. The earliest colonial homes were quite rude, indeed; they were generally dugouts or wigwams.
To build a dugout, you must first find an area where the ground has some sort of indentation; either a washout or an overhanging cliff is nice. With a spade you can expand the washout, making it deeper and level (you`ll have to rechannel where the rainwater will go) and then putting some kind of walls and roof over it. If you use a cliffside, you can sink a couple of forked posts in the ground, lay logs in the forks to form a ridge, lay poles between the ridge and the cliff to act as roof rafters, then cover with whatever material may be handy-smaller poles, grass or other thatch, etc. The ground helps to stabilize the temperature inside, so a smaller fire will keep the dugout warm. Often larger poles were used for the roof, and sod was placed on top of it. This worked poorly, as the sod leaked during heavy rains, but a drip-cloth hung over the ceiling would catch mud clods as they fell and drain off some of the water. It was not uncommon to get wet in a dugout, and often the settler would put a canopy over his bed (pallet would be a more accurate description) to keep him from getting rained on during the night. Sometimes, walls would be framed-especially over a mud wall-to help insulate the structure. Using waxed-paper for windows (you couldn`t see out, but it did let light in) and crudely fashioned wooden doors, the settler ended with a house which may not have had all the comforts of home, but at least kept him from freezing in the bitter New England winter.
The Indians throughout the American Woodlands built a structure which came to be called by the English settlers wigwams; these were unusually good (though only semi-permanent) houses made from bent saplings and covered with bark (birchbark or Elm) as siding. The architect would cut a series of saplings, no wider than an inch or so at the base, would char the bottoms in a fire to protect them from bugs, and would push them into the ground in pairs. He would then bend the tops over and tie them off to form a series of arches, which he would connect with crosspieces. The English had built arbors in much the same fashion, so the native`s construction techniques were not wholly unfamiliar to them.
A door was left at one end (actually, the Indians simply used a hole which they covered with an animal skin or matt) and the new-albeit small-home was either covered with bark, skins, or with mats woven by the women of the tribe. More mats were lined in the interior, and a second set of poles was often placed on the outside of the structure to hold the siding securely. When the wigwam was completed it was generally oval shaped, with a hole left open at the top and covered with a sheet of bark or mats to allow smoke to escape, and a small fire was kept going in the center. The early colonists were amazed at how warm and comfortable these wigwam were.
The natives sometimes build huge wigwams which became known as longhouses because they could be as long as 90 feet, and were occupied by multiple families. They would be known by the number of fires needed inside; they could be a three fire, five fire, etc. Often the longhouses were badly ventilated and very smoky, so the occupants spent as little time in them as possible.
Here is a website with photographs of Indian wigwams in Minnesota (from a later period); this is an excellent site, but takes a long time to load because of the many pictures. Still, it is worth the wait!
The English learned from their neighbors, and began constructing their own wigwams. They added several improvements, including a more peaked shape, an actual door, and a stick-built fireplace. This last was made by building a stone or shod firepit, then cutting sticks, peeling them, notching them, and stacking them log cabin style to form a chimney. The interior of this chimney would then be plastered with clay to prevent fires. Some of the English wigwams were covered with thick reed thatching, much like an old English thatched cottage rather than mats or bark (thatch makes great insulation) and more of this thatch would be laid on the dirt floor. (The natives used pine or cedar boughs and carpeted over this with more mats).
These English wigwams worked very well, but were fire-prone, so the colony discouraged continuous use of them. As soon as weather permitted the Pilgrims began construction of the plank houses they were more familiar with from home.
Go here to see a reconstruction of an English wigwam.
These earliest structures built by the Pilgrims and others are not what most Americans think of when they think of pioneers, but the days of the log cabins lay yet in the future, and the adapted wigwams and dugouts of the earliest settlers worked just as well as the later Swedish log cabins, and often were less work to construct. (Most Americans think that all Indians lived in tepee`s, too, but that was mainly a form used by the plains tribes.) I have to admit, I have a soft spot for the wigwam; it is a miracle of compact comfort.
I built one for myself on my property in the Ozarks; mine was more along the lines of the Native American than English variety, although I covered it with old carpeting, tarpaper,and tarps. If I light a gasoline lantern inside, the structure becomes noticeably warmer, and I can sit inside on a cold day with just a few lamps going and be quite comfortable. I haven`t slept inside (I don`t have a smoke hole, although I was working on heating it with a barrel-stove) but will probably get around to that at some point. I have it full of tools and things I want to keep dry, and will probably end up using it as a storage shed. Oh, and instead of tying the poles with twine I simply duct-taped them together. A true pioneer!
Anyway, I thought everyone could give thanks for their nice, warm homes on this November day of gratitude to the Almighty; the Pilgrims had NOTHING, no place to stay in the dead of the Massachusetts winter. They slept in tents while the snow fell and the wind howled, at least until they could construct their dugouts and wigwams. I am fairly certain the wigwam was cause enough for thanks to the Pilgrims!
The early colonists found themselves in country facing the bitter New England winter, without housing for themselves. Living in tents at first, the settlers realized they could not take the time to build themselves fine clapboard houses, and the log cabin had not yet come to America (the log cabin was a Swedish invention, although the Russians used something similar, and would not come to America until Swedes sent colonists to settle.) The need for housing more substantial than a tent was critical, lest the colonists freeze. The earliest colonial homes were quite rude, indeed; they were generally dugouts or wigwams.
To build a dugout, you must first find an area where the ground has some sort of indentation; either a washout or an overhanging cliff is nice. With a spade you can expand the washout, making it deeper and level (you`ll have to rechannel where the rainwater will go) and then putting some kind of walls and roof over it. If you use a cliffside, you can sink a couple of forked posts in the ground, lay logs in the forks to form a ridge, lay poles between the ridge and the cliff to act as roof rafters, then cover with whatever material may be handy-smaller poles, grass or other thatch, etc. The ground helps to stabilize the temperature inside, so a smaller fire will keep the dugout warm. Often larger poles were used for the roof, and sod was placed on top of it. This worked poorly, as the sod leaked during heavy rains, but a drip-cloth hung over the ceiling would catch mud clods as they fell and drain off some of the water. It was not uncommon to get wet in a dugout, and often the settler would put a canopy over his bed (pallet would be a more accurate description) to keep him from getting rained on during the night. Sometimes, walls would be framed-especially over a mud wall-to help insulate the structure. Using waxed-paper for windows (you couldn`t see out, but it did let light in) and crudely fashioned wooden doors, the settler ended with a house which may not have had all the comforts of home, but at least kept him from freezing in the bitter New England winter.
The Indians throughout the American Woodlands built a structure which came to be called by the English settlers wigwams; these were unusually good (though only semi-permanent) houses made from bent saplings and covered with bark (birchbark or Elm) as siding. The architect would cut a series of saplings, no wider than an inch or so at the base, would char the bottoms in a fire to protect them from bugs, and would push them into the ground in pairs. He would then bend the tops over and tie them off to form a series of arches, which he would connect with crosspieces. The English had built arbors in much the same fashion, so the native`s construction techniques were not wholly unfamiliar to them.
A door was left at one end (actually, the Indians simply used a hole which they covered with an animal skin or matt) and the new-albeit small-home was either covered with bark, skins, or with mats woven by the women of the tribe. More mats were lined in the interior, and a second set of poles was often placed on the outside of the structure to hold the siding securely. When the wigwam was completed it was generally oval shaped, with a hole left open at the top and covered with a sheet of bark or mats to allow smoke to escape, and a small fire was kept going in the center. The early colonists were amazed at how warm and comfortable these wigwam were.
The natives sometimes build huge wigwams which became known as longhouses because they could be as long as 90 feet, and were occupied by multiple families. They would be known by the number of fires needed inside; they could be a three fire, five fire, etc. Often the longhouses were badly ventilated and very smoky, so the occupants spent as little time in them as possible.
Here is a website with photographs of Indian wigwams in Minnesota (from a later period); this is an excellent site, but takes a long time to load because of the many pictures. Still, it is worth the wait!
The English learned from their neighbors, and began constructing their own wigwams. They added several improvements, including a more peaked shape, an actual door, and a stick-built fireplace. This last was made by building a stone or shod firepit, then cutting sticks, peeling them, notching them, and stacking them log cabin style to form a chimney. The interior of this chimney would then be plastered with clay to prevent fires. Some of the English wigwams were covered with thick reed thatching, much like an old English thatched cottage rather than mats or bark (thatch makes great insulation) and more of this thatch would be laid on the dirt floor. (The natives used pine or cedar boughs and carpeted over this with more mats).
These English wigwams worked very well, but were fire-prone, so the colony discouraged continuous use of them. As soon as weather permitted the Pilgrims began construction of the plank houses they were more familiar with from home.
Go here to see a reconstruction of an English wigwam.
These earliest structures built by the Pilgrims and others are not what most Americans think of when they think of pioneers, but the days of the log cabins lay yet in the future, and the adapted wigwams and dugouts of the earliest settlers worked just as well as the later Swedish log cabins, and often were less work to construct. (Most Americans think that all Indians lived in tepee`s, too, but that was mainly a form used by the plains tribes.) I have to admit, I have a soft spot for the wigwam; it is a miracle of compact comfort.
I built one for myself on my property in the Ozarks; mine was more along the lines of the Native American than English variety, although I covered it with old carpeting, tarpaper,and tarps. If I light a gasoline lantern inside, the structure becomes noticeably warmer, and I can sit inside on a cold day with just a few lamps going and be quite comfortable. I haven`t slept inside (I don`t have a smoke hole, although I was working on heating it with a barrel-stove) but will probably get around to that at some point. I have it full of tools and things I want to keep dry, and will probably end up using it as a storage shed. Oh, and instead of tying the poles with twine I simply duct-taped them together. A true pioneer!
Anyway, I thought everyone could give thanks for their nice, warm homes on this November day of gratitude to the Almighty; the Pilgrims had NOTHING, no place to stay in the dead of the Massachusetts winter. They slept in tents while the snow fell and the wind howled, at least until they could construct their dugouts and wigwams. I am fairly certain the wigwam was cause enough for thanks to the Pilgrims!
posted by Timothy Birdnow | 8:57 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home