Basic Timber Framing Exposed
by H. Weber Wilson
The era before 1840 can be called the
time of the hand-hewn house. It was a
time when pre-cut dimensioned lumber
was not readily available in most areas of
the U.S., and when nails were still a rare
and expensive item.
As a result, the basic method of
building a house was radically different
from the techniques used today.
The Basic Difference
These hand-hewn houses were started
by completely framing up the structure
with large, hand-cut timbers held together
with wooden pegs ("tree nails"). The entire
weight of the structure was carried on
the massive beams, rather than through
the whole wall as is the case with balloon
framing.
The studs and