September, 1921 
61 
Steamed shingles rounded to give the effect 
of thatch are an American interpretation of 
the old English cottage roofing. It can be 
used above stucco walls. Irregularity in 
laying the shingle adds to the effect. This 
treatment was used in the home of Robert 
Appleton at East Hampton, L. I. Frank E. 
Newman, architect 
going to face, that ‘‘apple trees will surround 
the back porch”, that “the big pine will be 
near the front gate”, that there will be “roses 
on the south wall” and “a window seat that 
looks out over the valley”. And of course the 
walls in this picture are seen definitely as to 
color and texture. If you decide that the walls 
are to be of concrete, stone, or English half¬ 
timber construction you then select, if you like, 
the new thatch roof, which will give you great 
satisfaction. You will find it both durable 
and picturesque. It is, in effect, a close 
“runner-up” to the old English thatch roof, 
which is laid w'ith bundles of rye, but has an 
advantage over the old thatch of being fire¬ 
proof and a shade more formal in effect, better 
suited to houses of dignity than the roofs that 
carry flower gardens all summer long, as do 
those on the enchanting little dwellings in the 
farm lands of England, France, Bavaria and 
Holland. 
The new American shingle thatch is less 
fairy-like than the blooming roofs of the Con¬ 
tinent, but it is graceful, interesting and sani¬ 
tary. The shingles of this new thatch come 
stained in tones most closely resembling old 
rye roofs. 
By an ingenious method of sawing a shingle 
butt and by using the shingles of uneven sizes 
and laying each course out of horizontal, in 
long irregular waves, an pffect of picturesque, 
soft irregularity is gained that is immensely 
like the old thatch. The width of the exposed 
surface of each course varies from 1" to 5". 
There are no sharp angles or corners on any 
points of these roofs, and the eaves, valleys, 
gables and dormers are rounded. With three 
shades of color combined on one roof an effect 
of soft beauty is gained that is remarkable. 
These shingles can be secured in brown, green 
and mixed brown, so that an effect can be se¬ 
cured of either the fresh or the weathered 
thatch. The life of a shingle thatch roof is 
greatly increased over the ordinary shingle be¬ 
cause the average exposure of each course is 
from about V/ 2 " to 3" instead of from 4" to 8". 
Certain protective stains are also used. 
The foundation for shingle thatching is first 
the rafters, which should be especially strong, 
for the many courses of shingles are heavy, 
augmented in rainy weather by the quantity of 
rain the roof absorbs. Over the rafters there 
should be, preferably, a roof-boarding or 
sheathing which follows the curves set by the 
rafters, and over the sheathing a heavy ply 
roofing felt on which the thatch is nailed. 
(Continued on page 68) 
On the Colonial type of house, where walls 
are stone and clapboard or brick, varicol¬ 
ored wood shingles are an advisable roofing. 
If walls are entirely of stone or brick, then 
slate may be used. Shingle has been com¬ 
bined with stone and clapboard in the home 
of I. E. Edgar, at Summit, N. J. Charles 
C. May, architect 
