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Rammed Earth Architecture's Journey to the High Hills Of RAMMED EARTH ARCHITECTURE’S JOURNEY TO THE HIGH HILLS OF THE SANTEE AND ITS ROLE AS AN EARLY CONCRETE A Thesis Presented to the Graduate Schools of Clemson University & The College of Charleston In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science Historic Preservation by Jessica Golebiowski May 2009 Accepted by: Ashley Robbins Wilson, Committee Chair Frances Ford Jonathan Poston Abstract Rammed earth, a form of earthen architecture and construction that has been used for thousands of years, has gone through periods of resurgence and decline. Its modern era rediscovery through practice and publications during the late 18th and early 19th century was fueled by writers and practitioners who disseminated the ideas of pisé starting in France extending to England and eventually to other European countries and the United States. Once these ideas reached America, farmers and intellectuals alike were interested in this simple yet durable means of construction. Rammed earth ideas, while intellectualized in Europe, originated from practice in Africa and the West Indies where enslaved and free Africans used their traditional methods of earth walling and wattle and daub construction. These traditions transferred to America through slave trade and immigration of free blacks and can be found in many southern states including Louisiana and South Carolina. Pisé and other forms of earthen architecture, tabby and bousillage, are examined to better understand earthen construction, its origins, methodology, influences, and position as an ancient and emerging construction technique. In South Carolina, Dr. William Wallace Anderson of Stateburg built wings on his house out of pisé, seven outbuildings, and a nearby church of the material. These rammed earth structures in the High Hills of the Santee, the Borough House (c. 1821) and the Church of ii the Holy Cross (c. 1850 – 1852) are studied as exceptional examples of surviving rammed earth in the United States. Their histories are explored, current conditions assessed, and conservation efforts discussed. The physical composition of rammed earth, strong and hard to penetrate, is analyzed and broken down into material components. Based on the analysis, methods of repair are specified. Finally, the long standing question of preservationists and engineers is addressed: is pisé an early form of concrete that evolved just before the invention of Portland cement in the early 19th century? ii Acknowledgements I want to thank Historic Charleston Foundation and Katherine Saunders, in particular, for her many ideas, including introducing me to Stateburg and rammed earth, and her encouraging words. I am grateful to Daniel Beaman of Cummings & McCrady Architects, Rev. Thomas W. Allen of the Church of the Holy Cross, and Jason Smith, the caretaker at the Borough House, for giving me access to these two unique buildings and supplying me with valuable sources and information. I thank my advisor, Ashley Robbins Wilson, for her constant support, vigilance, and guidance. I appreciate her constructive criticism and positive reinforcement, which both helped me remain focused and relatively stress-free during this process. I also want to thank Frances Ford and Jonathan Poston for their encouragement and assistance with this thesis. Finally, I want to thank my family and friends for their support and love throughout the years. iii Table of Contents Page Title Page .......................................................................................................................... i Abstract ............................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... vi Lists of Tables ................................................................................................................ vii List of Figures ............................................................................................................... viii Chapter 1: Earthen Architecture ...................................................................................... 1 Pisé ........................................................................................................... 2 Tabby ..................................................................................................... 27 Bousillage .............................................................................................. 38 Chapter 2: Rediscovery in the 18th and 19th Century and Transmittance of Pisé Ideas ................................................................................................ 41 France ..................................................................................................... 42 England .................................................................................................. 49 Germany ................................................................................................. 54 Russia ..................................................................................................... 56 Australia and New Zealand .................................................................... 59 United States of America ....................................................................... 60 Chapter 3: Rammed Earth in South Carolina ................................................................ 70 African Architecture .............................................................................. 73 The Borough House ............................................................................... 83 General Conservation Issues with Pisé ................................................ 104 Conservation Efforts at the Borough House ........................................ 111 The Church of the Holy Cross ............................................................. 117 Conservation Efforts at the Church of the Holy Cross ........................ 130 Chapter 4: Rammed Earth as Concrete and Materials Analysis ................................. 143 Definitions of Concrete ........................................................................ 144 Rammed Earth’s Influence on Early Concrete .................................... 145 iv Rammed Earth’s Routes to America and South Carolina .................... 153 Materials Analysis of Rammed Earth from Church of the Holy Cross ........................................................................................... 155 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 164 Appendices……… ....................................................................................................... 165 A: Francois Cointeraux’s Sketches ................................................................. 166 B: The Borough House ................................................................................... 168 C: The Church of the Holy Cross ................................................................... 184 Works Cited……… ..................................................................................................... 195 v List of Tables Table Page 1 Chart of excellent, good, fair, and poor condition ....................................... 95 2 Conditions of dependencies at the Borough House and the Church of the Holy Cross .......................................................................... 140 3 Weights of experiment components of a rammed earth sample from the Church of the Holy Cross ........................................................... 156 4 Rammed earth characteristics before acid digestion of a rammed earth sample from the Church of the Holy Cross ...................................... 156 5 Rammed earth color before acid digestion ................................................ 157 6 Rammed earth color after acid digestion ................................................... 157 7 Dry aggregate sieving results .................................................................... 159 8 Small container weights for sieve stack results ......................................... 160 9 Sieved pisé weights ................................................................................... 161 10 Microscopic observation of sieved pisé ..................................................... 162 vi List of Figures Figure Page 1 Ancient shutters held together with rope ....................................................... 2 2 Sketch of S.W. Johnson’s pisé house in New Brunswick, New Jersey ..................................................................................................... 5 3 Sketch of the parts of pisé shuttering ............................................................. 7 4 Termite damaged bond timber in pisé wall at the Church of the Holy Cross ........................................................................................ 11 5 Pisoir designs by Karl Ellington .................................................................. 18 6 Design for shuttering by Karl Ellington....................................................... 18 7 Sketch of pisé foundation by Karl Ellington ................................................ 20 8 Sketch of reinforcement used at pisé wall corners by Karl Ellington............................................................................................... 20 9 Harry Baker Humphrey’s pisé home in Washington, D.C .........................
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