Thumbnail-Click to see full imagePlumas County Adventures
Send Ron EMail: rcooke@csuchico.edu
Back Home
Log Cabins 1999
My 1999 adventures were mostly north of Quincy--Mt. Hough,
Walker Mine, Ward Creek, Genesee Valley, and Taylorsville areas.
I found enough log cabins that I was able to appreciate some of
the subtleties of the construction. In particular the way the
corners were notched and joined. Three different methods are shown
below.
The first of the cabins is what is left of the home at the Megown mine (1800s). Note that this is a thumbnail. If you click on the image you can view a full sized image!
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
The next log cabin is a bit more modern and has concrete or some sort of plaster between the logs to seal the joint. It is not inhabited, but with a bit of work (actually a lot of work) it could be. It is located in a beautiful little meadow.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This log cabin remnant can be found near Rhinehart Meadows. It is very close to Tollgate Creek as you can see. An 1881 GLO map of this area shows an "Old Tollgate." This is probably the Plumas Turnpike Company described in Fariss and Smith's 1882 History of Plumas County:
The joinery is very interesting and was obviously done by craftsmen.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
The corners are fitted carefully and then "pegged" in place with a large wooden peg. Remember this was all done with hand tools!
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This actually was a log "mill" house near Squirrel Creek. The mill house was near the entrance to a mine tunnel. The ore was processed in the house. It was built on a steep side hill and has fallen down.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This little cabin can be seen near Genesee.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This cabin is quite low! I can barely stand upright in it. The metal roof is probably not the original. Again you see the spaces between logs filled with mortar.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
The directions to this cabin came from an old (1870) GLO map. It noted "an old cabin on the Green Ledge Mine." It is my favorite log cabin. Look at the construction--the logs were squared off on the fronts before assembly. The space between adjacent logs was small and was filled with mud, and in many places, the dried mud is still there! The cabin still has all four walls, and because the corners are so well tied together, the structure is amazingly sturdy. The corners can be seen in detail in the next picture.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
Here is how the corners were notched together. Notice how well the logs fit together.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This beautiful log cabin is in the Walker Mine area.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This log cabin is relatively new, and may be more like the start of a log fort. However it has different corner joinery than the prior examples.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
Here is the way the corners of the "fort" were notched together. This method seems to produce a very tight and "locked" corner.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image
This cabin was a hybrid--it had "normal" construction, and also had a log component. It also had a feature (not visible) that many old cabins share--a "cold room." The back of this house had a connection to the hillside behind where a tunnel-like room had been excavated. The walls of the room were earthen and good insulators. The room would stay relative cool and could be used to store perishables. Another adventure of mine addresses the problem of keeping food cool in the olden days.
Thumbnail-Click to see full image