By John L. Shawver
David Williams Company, Publishers
232-238 William Street, New York
1904
Copyrighted 1904,
By David Williams Company.
This matter was originally presented in the columns ofCarpentry and Building, in response to continued requests for informationconcerning the plank frame system of construction, which for manyyears past has been growing in popularity in various sections of thecountry, more particularly the Central West. The author has given agreat deal of attention to the subject, having been associated withthe construction of plank frame barns for a long period, and he is,therefore, competent to discuss the matter from the standpoint ofthe practical builder. Barns of the character indicated have beenextensively erected through various sections of the West, and it iswith a view of presenting valuable data concerning the method ofconstruction that this little work has been compiled. In the courseof his articles the author points out the advantages of the form ofconstruction referred to and describes wherein there is a saving oftime, labor and material, an important consideration, especially insections of the country where timber for building purposes is not inplentiful supply.
By John L. Shawver.
The growing interest in the plank frame barn, as manifested byinquiries which have emanated from many quarters, calls for specificinformation which will enable every builder and farmer to avail himselfof the many advantages offered by this system of construction. Thesystem has been in use in Central Ohio for the past 20 years, and hasbeen rapidly growing in favor wherever people have had an opportunityof investigating its merits. During these years the system, which wasat first somewhat crude and undeveloped, has been gradually improved,until to-day, after many of the most severe tests, it is believed tohave reached very near perfection as regards economy of material andlabor, strength of frame, convenience of arrangement and durability ofstructure. The advantages offered by this method of construction are:
1. A saving in timber of from 40 to 60 per cent.—a not small item inmany localities where timber for building purposes has become a scarcearticle.
2. An opportunity to employ for the building of barns timber thatcould scarcely receive consideration if solid timber mortise and tenonframes were to be built.
3. A saving in the cost of sawing, cutting and hauling of aboutone-half of the timber.
4. A saving in cost of framing, ranging from 50 to 90 per cent.,according to the plan of the building and the efficiency of the builders.[Pg 6]
5. In cases where farmers’ wives are expected to board and lodgethe builders, a saving in labor and vexation of two or three weeks’unnecessary time for framing old style barns.
6. A riddance of practically all of the interior timbers, which areusually an interference with the use of the horse forks and hay slings,as well as a source of constant vexation at threshing time and allother times when the barn is in use.
7. The full benefit of the self supporting arch roof, a constructionof combined triangles, long braces and perpendi