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Colonial America (1492-1765)

Colonial Architecture

Colonial Architecture
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 5 to 7
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   7.91

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    added-on, cave-like, covering, guardhouse, high-roofed, saltbox, saltboxes, sawn, storehouse, tent-like, original, williamsburg, timber, wealthy, distinctive, design
     content words:    Cape Cod, New England, Early Cape Cods, Later Cape Cods, Colonial Georgian

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Colonial Architecture
By Sharon Fabian 		  
1     The colonists were starting from scratch. They were only able to bring over a limited amount of building supplies from England, and there was no place to buy more once they arrived here.
 
2     There were plenty of natural resources - trees, rock, clay, etc. - but it would take time to turn these resources into building materials. In the meantime, the colonists built temporary structures with the materials at hand. Their first buildings were designed only to provide shelter and safety. More permanent buildings would come later.
 
3     Some of the earliest settlers built tent-like structures from poles with branches or pieces of fabric for a covering. Some built cave-like structures against the sides of hills. Others built walls called palisades from pointed stakes set in the ground side by side.
 
4     The original fort at Jamestown was a palisade fort. The palisade was intended to provide protection for the colonists inside. Inside the palisade, they built their homes, a storehouse, a guardhouse, and their church.
 
5     Early colonial homes were built of timber, probably split logs, not smooth sawn boards. A typical house might have one or two rooms downstairs. This would include the kitchen, living and working space, and space for the parents to sleep. A ladder would lead to a loft upstairs where the children slept.

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