In the 1870s, Joseph M. Grugan of Lockhaven, Pennsylvania left his German family and moved to Olympia, Washington. In 1889 he built my house. He was the foreman of the westside mill in town.

The two-story house is constructed with rough-hewn 14-16 inch wide planks between 1 and 2 inches thick arranged vertically around the entire house from foundation to roof-line. I imagine the planks were originally butted up against each other, but after 115 years some shrinkage may have occurred with up to a half-inch gap between some planks. The outside siding, clear cedar tongue and groove about 2 inches thick serves as the horizontal support for the structure. The interior walls are just wallpaper over the rough-hewn planks. Of course the electrical wiring was an after thought many years later and is run through conduit along the baseboards. There is no wallpocket. The house was built with square nails. The floor joists are also these wide rough-hewn planks. There is only one small interior wall in the house that could possibly be loading supporting, and it consists entirely of rough-hewn plank.

I don't know anything about timber framing. Can you tell me what the official name is for this type of construction? Everyone says "balloon framing," but when I look at illustrations of that, it certainly does not look the same. When did this style of construction go out of style? The man who built the house was born in the 1840s.

The ceilings are wide beadboard covered with aesthetic green calcimine powder. A kitchen was added on before 1909 that does have a small wall pocket with fire stops. In the kitchen, the interior walls are the same as the outside horizontal siding, except arranged vertically. It is coated with the same aesthetic olive-green color, except is oil paint. Is this what they used to call a "summer kitchen"?

In the kitchen is a very strange old abandoned chimney. It is supported by a wood frame holding up the brick chimney. What are those types of chimneys called?

Thanks for any help.

Bill

I live not far from you and have encountered that same or similar style of construction. I don't know what it might be called or if it really has a name. It is not balloon framing, which is a style of stick (2x4) framing where the studs run from bottom plate on the first floor through to the top plate of the second. The second floor framing was hung from either a let in rim or onto a let in ledger. The type of building you have is I believe a folk style born of necessity and available materials.
Remember that at the time Mr. Grugan moved here this area was still fairly primitive. Wa. became a state the same year. The railroads had just built all over the area and it was booming. If you look at photos of the area at that time what you see commonly is stumps and spindly leftovers from the extensive logging that had been taking place.
My bet is that your “planking” is West Red Cedar. West. Red cedar was at one time considered a “junk” wood. Not that people were unaware of its rot resistant properties but the Fir was worth much more and if you were going to go to the work of cutting, bucking, skidding and shipping a tree at that time you went for the best paying tree. Not that that has changed

So, here is my theory. Most of the good timber had been cut, milled and was gone or in such high demand that it was priced at a premium. Mr. Grugan being a working guy may not have had the wherewithal to build a good balloon frame house (the more common technology) and he may have been a “boomer” with no plans to stay for any length of time. He was foreman at the mill and may have had access to a cheap (free?) material that allowed him to build what he could afford.
The chimney is I think another clue that this was built by someone on a tight budget. I have seen that detail before as well and believe it to be a cost saving measure.

It may be interesting to contact the history museum in Tacoma to see if they have any information for you and they might find your story interesting in that you have some history of the builder. I would be very interested to hear about whatever you learn.

J.E.B.

We've always called "double Boarded" here in western PA. Near my house there are many built like that, many are hemlock - 1" to 1 1/2" thick boards. This may not be the official name but seems to be commonly used.

In Oregon these types of houses were known as box construction. See if your library has a copy of "Space, Style & Structure", vol. 1, published by the Oregon Historical Society in 1974, now out of print. Chapter 2, pp 98-99 has some information & photos that you may find interesting.
I too believe the chimneys were built this way to save time & money. They didn't pay much attention to "clearance to combustibles" back then. Down here in the Willamette Valley, examples of this type of construction are becoming harder & harder to find & some people have a misinformed notion that it's shabby type of construction, even though the one that are left stiil stand pretty straight & square.

Hi all:
Yes and this type of construction was prevalent up here in Ontario Canada appearing mainly in homes and schools about the mid 18oo's. The ones that I am familiar with had a ring of timbers at the upper sill level, and of course the floor structure had its usual timber framing and timber joists let into mortises all along. The planks here were also about 1.5" thick and were hemlock and northern white pine covered with siding, held on with large wrought iron nails. I believe this type of construction should receive some type of consideration for documentation and recording for future generations use. Around here this type of construction was considered a French Canadian style.
NH

Thanks for all of your replies. I'm interested in hearing more input.

In 1999, my Dad and I replaced pierposts under the house with treated pierposts. We discovered that the house used to sit on big round logs. There was one left in the middle and the house was sitting on both it and the newer one from 1922 next to it, plus 18 other pierposts on concrete under there. Anyway, when I pulled it out, the bottom of it that was in the soil had been burnt. We could pull it out then but I imagine they couldn't get it out very easily before which is why they left it. I guess they burned the end before sitting the logs in the soil to prevent bugs and decay?

I've had contractors put the level up to the house a number of times, as well as a building inspector who could not believe how straight and square the building is. My question is, is this a real poor type of construction or are these houses built to last?

The guy who either built it or had it built purchased both of these city lots in 1889 together for $400.00. By all accounts that would have been considered an exceptional price at the time for small lots. However he bought the lots in February 1889 and it was around that time that the settlers were aware of impending statehood and a building boom was occurring. Family legend is that he built this place first for his niece to come from Pennsylvania, but I found out they didn't move here until 1905, so I think he put it up fast as a rental at first. He rented it for 15 years. I believe it is possible that the renter who lived here in 1900, James M. Kingshorn, born in Scotland, was the one who added the kitchen and the quick chimney. He was at least renting the house that year, and on a window in the kitchen were his initials under 80 years worth of green paint that I had stripped, proving to me the kitchen was added before 1905.

The builder of this house, J.M. Grugan, moved another house to the corner lot that was an elaborate Italianate Victorian, and that is where he lived. This place only has understated decorative elements such as the front gable end scallop shaped shingles and some decoration under all of the windows.

Of course material was cheaper than labor and it probably got put up real fast. He at least didn't scrimp on the window glass though as it has 7 foot tall windows with the original Victorian hardware, which were pricier than the multiple-pane windows.

The entire house appears to be Western Red Cedar, including the woodwork. The floors even look like cedar, but I imagine they are fir. A lot of people, including experienced wood people, have trouble saying exactly what some of the wood is. It took me 400 hours to strip, sand and refinish the staircase. On the entire staircase there is not one knot of wood on the entire staircase except a tiny microscopic one on one of the risers. When I power paint removed the paint on the house last summer and repainted it, there were only a couple of tiny knots on the entire house. Everything is 100% knot-free number 1 clear cedar.

I don't know anything about construction. What is meant by ring of timbers? Upper sill?

When I walk around barefoot on the wood floor in the back bedroom upstairs, I can feel the floor joists underneath. It seems as if there are a number of joists going off in different directions in the subfloor like spokes in a wheel. I guess to know for sure I would have to take up a floor board to see. It doesn't seem logical that this would be.

Don't mean to be chatty, but I think I've come to the best forum right here, and figure this is the right place to ask.

Hi Bill:

The ring of timbers I am referring to are the upper plates that in timberframing their main purpose was to hold all the post's tops together, and for the lowere ends of the rafters to set in mortise pockets along the eve.
NH