MARTIN HOUSES 



THE Purple Martin is the largest of the Swallows, beautiful 

 in color, form and flight, and displays a fondness for man 

 by nesting always in close proximity to our dwellings. Some tribes 

 of North American Indians encouraged the presence of Martins 

 about their wigwams, by suspending from the lodge poles, cala- 

 bashes or gourds fashioned into nesting boxes, which these birds 

 readily occupied. The French Creoles of Louisiana also adopted 

 this same method in providing nesting places, the gourds in this 

 instance being fastened to the top of a pole set in the ground. 

 Martins are birds of a sociable disposition, and will nest in com- 

 munities when provided with a nesting box containing many 

 apartments, each family living in a state of perfect harmony with 

 its neighbors next door. Being a bird of powerful flight, it is able 

 to travel long distances in foraging for food, and a large colony of 

 Martins will thus rid a wide area of winged insect pests, especially 

 during the period following the hatching of the eggs and until the 

 young birds have left the nest. Disastrous cold storms in the 

 spring of 1903, and wanton shooting in the southern states during 

 the years following, sadly decimated the ranks of the Martins. 

 Thanks to a wise legislation, our migratory birds are now the 

 feathered wards of the United States Government and protection 

 at all times is afforded them within the borders of the United 

 States. Thus, barring destruction by the elements, the Purple 

 Martin should soon re-establish itself in its oldtime abundance 

 throughout southern New England, provided suitable nesting sites 

 are made ready for the birds. Let us therefore encourage the pres- 

 ence of these beautiful birds by erecting a Martin house, such an 

 one as will add picturesqueness to its environment of lawns and 

 shrubbery. 



Martin Houses are really miniature reproductions of our own 

 dwelling houses, and various styles of architecture may be used in 

 their design, and they may contain few or many rooms, as may 

 suit the fancy or ability of the builder. Unless one is very proficient 

 in the use of wood-working tools and has a well-equipped carpen- 

 ter 's bench, it would be advisable to purchase a Martin house out- 



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