What Is a Saltbox Style House?

Description

• The saltbox house features a two-story area in the front of the home, with a one-story addition at the rear. The front rooms consisted of a hall, for informal gatherings, and a parlor, for formal functions. The front has a steeply pitched roof, while the back has a much longer sloping roof that covers the rear addition. A wooden frame house with a plain facade, the saltbox typically has a transom over the entrance and windows with multiple panes. The clapboard siding was made from local species of trees, such as oak or pine. Clapboards and wood shingles for the roof were shaped from logs with a cleaving tool known as a froe. The style usually incorporates a central chimney, although houses with end chimneys appear as well.

History

• The saltbox style developed in England. Owners of two-story cottages started building additions at the rear to gain more space. English settlement of New England began in the early 1600s and, starting around 1650, colonists adopted the saltbox style as they prospered and needed more room. After the style gained popularity, home builders often incorporated the rear portion of the house into the original design.

Orientation

• As the style developed, builders began orientating the front of the house to the south and the rear to the north. This allowed the occupants, who typically spent most of their time in the front of the house because it contained the main rooms, to get more light during the winter. In some instances, the house might face away from the road because the north--south orientation was so important. Architect Mary Ann Steane suggests that such nontraditional thinking reveals American self-reliance and frontier spirit.

Cellars

• Unlike construction in England, saltbox homes built in New England often had cellars. In England, homeowners did not need a large storage space, but in America, settlers were often far from towns and supplies and needed to keep a large amount of provisions. Aside from general storage, the cellars also made an excellent place for the colonists to preserve their root vegetables. (references 4 page 8 paragraph 3)