I’ve heard it said that men would hike into the wilderness of Kentucky with nothing but a rifle and an axe head. Upon arriving they would take the axe head and create a handle for it. And then, they would take the completed axe and make a simple cabin like this where they would live for a few years while clearing their land and building a larger home… a cabin with wood floors, a stone foundation, and stone chimney.

Originally posted 2015-09-05 22:27:53.

It take a LOT of logs to build a full size cabin… but one this size, only a few.  This is a one person cabin and that’s including the back addition.

Originally posted 2015-09-04 21:49:29.

Here’s one in Texas.

And one from Indiana.

A cabin in California.

And… a cabin in Virginia (I built this one 🙂

Here we have four cabins from Texas, Indiana, California and Virginia…  From the deep South to the North, from the Pacific to the Atlantic,  this is a nation of cabin folks!

Have you got one for yourself?

Originally posted 2015-09-02 12:41:41.

Davy Crockett (better known as “the king of the wild Frontier”, (thanks to Walt Disney), was born here… Morristown, Tennessee.

His parents ran the local tavern… here’s a recreation of it…

Originally posted 2015-08-30 13:36:48.

Have you ever wondered what heaven looks like?
Well, here’s a peek… a perfect little mill. Don’t you think?
(I wish I knew the identity of the artist)

Originally posted 2015-08-22 13:28:55.

When it comes time to add on to your log home… will that addition be made of wood, or stone?

For many, if cost were the same for either, would choose stone. Without a doubt the stone is a more expensive option… in the short run. But over the coming decades, and even centuries, as the wood siding will need maintenance, repairs and even replacement, the stone will be there… forever.

But the wood should not be considered second rate by any means. There is a warmth and charm to wood. People who are drawn to log homes are also wood fanatics, they can’t get enough of it. And that is a good thing.

The choice is yours to make.

Which will you choose?

Originally posted 2015-08-16 13:41:08.

A mighty fine cabin and homestead located within the Great Smokey Mountain park. What’s not to like about this place?

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Originally posted 2015-08-15 20:39:17.

There are three different types of corner notches on log cabins found here in the Mid-Atlantic states… the half-dovetail, the V-notch, and the square notch.

The half-dovetail and the V-notch are found on log homes and barns and even often on barns and other types of outbuildings. Whereas I have only seen the square notch used on supplemental farm buildings.

The half-dovetail, as seen above,  I believe, is the most attractive of the three types of notches and offers the added benefit of ensuring that all of the rain that strikes the top of the notch drains out of the notch and to the exterior of the cabin. You would think it would be a difficult notch to make but I have found it easier to make than the V-notch and not much harder than the square notch.

The V-notch is perhaps slightly more common in old cabins. The top of each notch looks like a pointed roof of a house. I have heard some people refer to this notch as a saddle notch, but that name I reserve for the notch used out west where round logs are commonly used and thus rounded notches are created for them… which makes each notch look like a saddle. (I wouldn’t ever want to ride a horse with a saddle that was shaped like a pointed roof of a house)

And then finally, there is the square notch. A common choice among farmers wanting to get their barns up quickly and covered over with a large overhanging roof that would protect these notches from ever getting wet. The notches’ flat tops and bottoms invite rain in and don’t allow it drain out so rot would soon happen if left exposed to weather. These notches also offer no horizontal binding strength so each notch is “blind pegged” from above as each log is put in place. (blind pegged meaning that you don’t see the pegs)

So when it comes time to build your cabin… which notch will you use?

Originally posted 2015-08-13 13:37:07.

Would you rather have a small log cabin to retreat to from the busyness of this life? or, would you rather have that same cabin connected to your home where you could easily enjoy it every day?

Originally posted 2015-08-11 15:39:12.

A fine old log cabin near Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The wide logs appear to be poplar; a wise choice in building a log cabin then, and now.

This is a great example of how far you can get in building a home with only the aid of an axe.

Originally posted 2015-08-11 15:05:05.