An enduring feature of timber frames is that they can be dismantled and re-used. A traditional barn-raising, in which a community comes together to erect a frame in one day is preceded by weeks of joiners’ labor: cutting and fitting the posts, girts and braces, plates and tie beams. With the help of many hands, or…
In 30 years of investigating New England’s historic churches, PTF has never encountered a better truss system than that of Eastport’s Central Congregational Church. Built in 1828, the roof system combines the traditional strength of a king post-prince post truss and principal rafter-principal purlin roof with innovative tying geometry that prevents the pitfalls of rafter…
The First Parish Meetinghouse of East Derry, NH is preparing for a big anniversary, its tricentennial. What does one even get for a church on its 300th? Wood? Copper? Both, as it turns out. Beginning with a thorough assessment and rehabilitation plan in 2011, the congregation has been working steadily to repair extensive damage throughout…
The NH Old House and Barn Expo was a great success. To be honest, I expected what I’d seen at other “old home” trade shows: booths hawking fiberglass steeples and plastic decking. Instead, I was inspired by the level of craftsmanship and care on exhibit. Sometimes it can feel like we are alone in the wilderness,…
Middleton, NH is one of those friendly, tightly-knit communities where folks meet weekly for a potluck at the old town hall. The center of town is at a place known as Four Corners, at the intersection of Kings Highway and New Durham/Ridge Road. Our subject, the Old Town Hall, stands at one of the corners;…
New England is peppered with antique barns in various states of disrepair, and saving them is central to our mission. Timber-framed barns are icons of the New England landscape. They connect us to our agrarian and architectural history and contain centuries of embodied energy. But many other books, such as Field Guide to New England…