Staddle stones, or steddle stones, [lower-alpha 1] were originally used as supporting bases for granaries, hayricks, game larders, etc. The staddle stones lifted the granaries above the ground, thereby protecting the stored grain from vermin and water seepage. In Middle English staddle, or stadle, is stathel, from Old English stathol, a foundation, support or trunk of a tree. They can be mainly found in Great Britain, Norway ("stabbur"), Galicia and Asturias (Northern Spain).
The name itself and evidence from surviving vernacular buildings with wooden 'feet' suggest that at first the staddles or supports were made of wood, such as at Peper Harow granary in Surrey. [3] Stone staddles were longer lasting and a more reliable means of supporting structures which were sometimes a considerable weight.
The name has become integrated into the landscape with bridges, houses, farms and other structures incorporating the name 'staddle'.
The staddle stones usually had a separate head and base which gave the whole structure a 'mushroom'-like appearance. Different areas in the United Kingdom had different designs. The base varied from cylindrical to tapered rectangular to near triangular. Flat-topped cone-shaped staddle stones are to be found in parts of the Isle of Wight. The tops are flat to support the beams, however some variation exists, such as square tops, fluted designs, slate tops, etc.
A fine example is the English Granary built 1731, supported on staddle stones, which can be seen in the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum in West Sussex. Such structures were common in southern England in the 18th century. At Higher Farm in Heathfield, Tavistock, staddle stones are part of the substantial barns built by the Duke of Bedford in the 19th century. The dressed granite stone bases have specially hewn slate tops.
The materials used depended on the stone available, giving rise to sandstone, red sandstone, granite examples, etc.
The tower mill at Reigate on the Wray Common ceased to work in 1895. The mill had a granary standing next to it, supported by a large number of staddle stones. [4]
The Museum of Scottish Country Life at Wester Kittochside near East Kilbride has two 'Stathels', made in Edinburgh of cast iron. The structure is basically a cast iron version of a set of staddle stones with its wooden framework. These rare survivals are still in use.
The base stones taper towards the top with an overlapping cap stone placed above, making it almost impossible for a rodent to climb up and into the hay or grain stored above. The air could freely circulate beneath the stored crops and this helped to keep it dry. [5] A wood framework was placed onto the tops of the stones, the staddles being arranged in two or three rows, giving sixteen or more stones. The hayricks, Tithe barns, granaries, etc. were built on top of this frame.
These were often constructed with wooden weather-boards such as at Blaxland Farm in Sturry, Kent, which has nine staddles. However, if the grain was stored loose then the sides were filled in with brick nogging and light lath-and-plaster at the wall tops. Wooden steps up to the buildings were detachable and stored by hanging them up on the side of the structure. If stone or brick steps were built then the top step was not built, thus denying access to rats and other vermin. Some of these granaries had a 'cat flap' and others had a recess inside the steps which served as a dog kennel. [6]
Most granaries were used for the storage of two or three separate crops, having a capacity of 500 to 2500 bushels. The arrangement of the stones to support the structure and its weight when in use, required nine, twelve or sixteen staddles. The production of staddles was therefore a fairly significant local industry. Small granaries could make do with five, one being in the middle. The Upper Hexford granary in Oxfordshire uses thirty-six staddles. [3]
Beehives were often set on top of staddle stones to keep out predators and provide dry and airy conditions. [7]
Small staddle stones were used to support small roofed box-shaped game larders which were used on the larger estates for storage of game, such as pheasant, brought back by shooting parties, etc.
Timber-framed barns raised onto staddle stones were sometimes found in the south of England. Apart from the usual benefits it seems that some correlation between this barn type and the builder being a tenant exists. Being on staddles such barns remained the property of the tenant. [6] In Galicia and Asturias (NW Spain), these barns are called hórreos.
Staddles are often found in architectural salvage yards as they may be seen as attractive structures. They are also sold new, being made from moulded concrete. Chainsaws are used to produce wooden 'staddle stones' for use as garden seats or ornaments. In this context the staddle stones are often called mushroom stones .
Staddle stones are often well over a century old and have developed a good lichen 'patina' with slow and fast growing species adhering to the surfaces. They are better not cleaned as the lichen flora is well worth preserving to add to the biodiversity of a garden scene.
Old land deeds in northeastern United States often refer to Oak Staddle or Walnut Staddle. These deeds are from the late 18th century to the middle 19th century. Either the owners would cut a tree leaving the stump and request that the surveyors measure to it, or the surveyor would measure out to the location of a new lot corner and a staddle would be inserted into the ground like a boundary stone.
A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain. As a result, the term barn is often qualified e.g. tobacco barn, dairy barn, cow house, sheep barn, potato barn. In the British Isles, the term barn is restricted mainly to storage structures for unthreshed cereals and fodder, the terms byre or shippon being applied to cow shelters, whereas horses are kept in buildings known as stables. In mainland Europe, however, barns were often part of integrated structures known as byre-dwellings. In addition, barns may be used for equipment storage, as a covered workplace, and for activities such as threshing.
Raccards are traditional granaries that can be found in parts of the Minho, north of Portugal, in Galicia and Asturias, north-west of Spain, Swiss Alps and in the Italian Alps. In Italy they are called rascard and in Savoy regard. They are found in the Valle d'Aosta region of Italy.
Stilt houses are houses raised on stilts over the surface of the soil or a body of water. Stilt houses are built primarily as a protection against flooding; they also keep out vermin. The shady space under the house can be used for work or storage. Stilt houses are commonly found in Southeast Asia, Oceania, Central America, the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast of the United States, northern parts of South America, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and the Maldives.
A granary is a storehouse or room in a barn for threshed grain or animal feed. Ancient or primitive granaries are most often made of pottery. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals and from floods.
A horse mill is a mill, sometimes used in conjunction with a watermill or windmill, that uses a horse engine as the power source. Any milling process can be powered in this way, but the most frequent use of animal power in horse mills was for grinding grain and pumping water. Other animal engines for powering mills are powered by dogs, donkeys, oxen or camels. Treadwheels are engines powered by humans.
The Weald and Downland Living Museum is an open-air museum in Singleton, West Sussex. The museum is a registered charity. The museum covers 40 acres (16 ha), with over 50 historic buildings dating from 950AD to the 19th century, along with gardens, farm animals, walks and a mill pond.
An hórreo is a typical granary from the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, built in wood or stone, raised from the ground by pillars ending in flat staddle stones to prevent access by rodents. Ventilation is allowed by the slits in its walls.
A corn crib or corncrib is a type of granary used to dry and store corn. It may also be known as a cornhouse or corn house.
Threshing (thrashing) was originally "to tramp or stamp heavily with the feet" and was later applied to the act of separating out grain by the feet of people or oxen and still later with the use of a flail. A threshing floor is of two main types: 1) a specially flattened outdoor surface, usually circular and paved, or 2) inside a building with a smooth floor of earth, stone or wood where a farmer would thresh the grain harvest and then winnow it. Animal and steam powered threshing machines from the nineteenth century onward made threshing floors obsolete. The outdoor threshing floor was either owned by the entire village or by a single family, and it was usually located outside the village in a place exposed to the wind.
Dalgarven Mill is near Kilwinning, in the Garnock Valley, North Ayrshire, Scotland and it is home to the Museum of Ayrshire Country Life and Costume. The watermill has been completely restored over a number of years and is run by the independent Dalgarven Mill Trust.
The National Museum of Rural Life, previously known as the Museum of Scottish Country Life, is based at Wester Kittochside farm, lying between East Kilbride in South Lanarkshire and Carmunnock in Glasgow. It is run by National Museums Scotland.
Dutch barn is the name given to markedly different types of barns in the United States and Canada, and in the United Kingdom. In the United States, Dutch barns represent the oldest and rarest types of barns. There are relatively few—probably fewer than 600—of these barns still intact. Common features of these barns include a core structure composed of a steep gabled roof, supported by purlin plates and anchor beam posts, the floor and stone piers below. Little of the weight is supported by the curtain wall, which could be removed without affecting the stability of the structure. Large beams of pine or oak bridge the center aisle for animals to provide room for threshing. Entry was through paired doors on the gable ends with a pent roof over them, and smaller animal doors at the corners of the same elevations. The Dutch Barn has a square profile, unlike the more rectangular English or German barns. In the United Kingdom a structure called a Dutch barn is a relatively recent agricultural development meant specifically for hay and straw storage; most examples were built from the 19th century. British Dutch barns represent a type of pole barn in common use today. Design styles range from fixed roof to adjustable roof; some Dutch barns have honeycombed brick walls, which provide ventilation and are decorative as well. Still other British Dutch barns may be found with no walls at all, much like American pole barns.
A baserri is a traditional half-timbered or stone-built type of housebarn farmhouse found in the Basque Country in northern Spain and Southwestern France. The baserris, with their gently sloping roofs and entrance portals, are highly characteristic of the region and form a vital part in traditional Basque societal structures. They are also seen to have played an important role in protecting the Basque language in periods of persecution by providing the language with a very dispersed but substantial speaker base.
Kura are traditional Japanese storehouses. They are commonly durable buildings built from timber, stone or clay used to safely store valuable commodities.
Log buildings and structures can be categorized as historic and modern. A diverse selection of their forms and styles with examples of architectural elements is discussed in the following articles:
St George's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Eastergate in West Sussex, England. It is the ancient parish church of Eastergate, although since 1992 it has been administered as part of a joint ecclesiastical parish with the churches in neighbouring Barnham and Aldingbourne. As part of this group, the building is still in regular use for worship on Sundays and weekdays. Eastergate village school has links with the church, and pupils regularly attend services.
An owl hole is a structural entrance built into buildings to allow predatory birds, typically barn owls, to enter. The birds prey on farm vermin, and therefore benefit the human owner of the structure in a symbiotic relationship.
The Hutmacher Farm near Manning, North Dakota, United States, is a farm that was developed in 1911. The farm exemplifies the architecture of ethnic Germans from Ukraine and Russia. The farm was owned by the Hutmacher family, a Black Sea German immigrants from South Russia.
A game larder, also sometimes known as a deer or venison larder, deer, venison or game house, game pantry or game store, is a small domestic outbuilding where the carcasses of game, including deer, game birds, hares and rabbits, are hung to mature in a cool environment. A feature of large country houses and sporting lodges in Britain and parts of northern Europe from the 18th century, game larders continue to be used by shooting estates.
An outbuilding, sometimes called an accessory building or a dependency, is a building that is part of a residential or agricultural complex but detached from the main sleeping and eating areas. Outbuildings are generally used for some practical purpose, rather than decoration or purely for leisure, although luxury greenhouses such as orangeries or ferneries may also be considered outbuildings. This article is limited to buildings that would typically serve one property, separate from community-scale structures such as gristmills, water towers, fire towers, or parish granaries. Outbuildings are typically detached from the main structure, so places like wine cellars, root cellars and cheese caves may or may not be termed outbuildings depending on their placement. A buttery, on the other hand, is never an outbuilding because by definition is it is integrated into the main structure.
