Log Buildings of Southern Indiana

When a person set out to build his house in southern Indiana a century ago, a series of complex decisions had to be made: Shaped log or hewn-and-chinked? Dog-trot or I-house? Which neighbors can help? How many of the seventy-five necessary tools must be bought or made? How much time is available? How these decisions were made and how these structures were built can be found in Log Buildings of Southern Indiana, an invaluable book for anyone interested in the history, construction, and preservation of log buildings and the architecture of the American Midwest. Houses, barns, or outbuildings constructed of logs have always aroused interest, wonder, and curiosity in Indiana. To many people they represent a very tangible link with the past, a way of gaining insight into the everyday life of the pre-industrial era. Despite such interest, there have been few detailed studies of the log buildings of southern Indiana. Based on a close study of more than 400 log buildings carried out over a period of many years, Warren Roberts attempts to fill that lack. Employing more than 50 photographs and 45 drawings, Roberts describes the extant log buildings of southern Indiana, categorizes them, and tells how they were built. He also presents the background and history of log constructing in western Europe and the United States, and he discusses various theories concerning the origins of log construction in America.

Warren E. Roberts has taught at Indiana University since 1949. He is currently professor emeritus of folklore and teaches courses in Indiana folklore and traditional material culture. He has published a number of articles on other aspects of the folk architecture of southern Indiana and on folk crafts of the region.