Those Amazing Slab Huts by Paul Wheeldon
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HERITAGE Newsletter of the Blue Mountains Association of Cultural Heritage Organisations Inc. March – April 2014 Issue No. 32 ISSN 2203-43666 The slab hut housing Hazelbrook wood supplying saw bench business owned by Joseph (left) and Florence (centre) Taggett circa 1920s. Photograph courtesy Ken Goodlet Those Amazing Slab Huts by Paul Wheeldon ur earliest pioneers ‘wattle and daub’ construction was Primarily the frame of the building became renowned for their not in any way suitable for the was erected, commencing with the O building expertise in the Australian climate. corner posts, good solid logs of the construction of their dwellings. desired height were let into the The most common early ground at least a half metre. The Australian outback settler was constructions were of the ‘vertical also famous for his versatile use of slab’ type. According to the degree of the closest materials at hand. performance required they were There were of course a either left round or adzed or broad If he had easily quarried stone and considerable number of variations axed into square shape. little timber, even if he had only the in their construction in this type most elementary idea of masonry, alone. Door openings and window outlets he would probably build his were generally indicated by posts. habitation in stone, either in perhaps a two room hut or, In the more permanent if his family requirements buildings a base and top called for greater plate were prepared again accommodation, he would not necessarily squared, by construct a cottage of cutting a channel of perhaps several rooms. 1 ½ inches wide and two inches deep in which to set If he was somewhat of a the adzed and squared ends tradesman at all he would of the split up-right slabs. build a pitched roof and if it were to be a better class Very often the based ends dwelling he would roof it in of the slabs were merely let split shingles in preference into the ground, where, of to perhaps a bark roof. Wingebelaley formerly course, they ultimately rotted. Cullenbenbong, a slab hut built The discriminating builder always By comparison the majority of by Bernard O’Reilly in the used a good base plate set up off outback huts or small cottages Kanimbla Valley and the ground on a foundation of were of wooden or slab immortalised in his son’s book stones and lime mortar to prevent construction. The early settler named like the hut. Photograph rotting. learnt quickly that the old English courtesy Ian Jack 1997 HERITAGE 1 March – April 2014 Stringy bark was the preferred that it would not split was often a Stringy bark timber for split slabs, or was it guarded secret by some. because there was a greater abundance of that timber? It consisted of keeping it rolled up was the and almost immediately stood over Not only did the selected wood a small fire so that it was virtually a split straight but it was among the chimney. preferred most durable of timber. According to the condition of the The discriminating timber worker bark it would be roasted, so to timber for was particularly fussy about speak, for perhaps half-an-hour selecting his trees. and then probably turned end for end to complete the process. split slabs It was generally accepted that The split edges of the slabs were either the white or red stringy bark The sheets were then carefully laid nearly always adzed or squared off was suitable but the tree that grew out on the ground and weighted to ensure the best possible fit in the valley or creek beds was the down flat before being placed on between slabs. best to split. the roof. The roof frame was constructed A chip would be struck off a tree It was generally conceded that this from round timber ‘saplings’ (small under selection and the chip split heating process also increased its young trees). It was a pitched roof readily in the hand it followed the waterproof qualities. often with ‘hip’ ends. tree would be a splitter. When the bark was placed in In an ordinary dwelling it was Trees off the higher ground were position it was generally held down invariably roofed with stringy bark, generally the last choice, and if by further timber placed on top of it or perhaps, if it was a fair size possible were to be avoided for and dowel pegged to keep it better class cottage, it may have this purpose. together. used a wooden shingle roof The bark would be used for the Later, of course, both wire and requiring very much more roofing roof and again called for some skill nails were often used. battens which has to be sawn. in its preparation. The tree was felled by either axe or Hence we do not find any real The length would be cut around cross-cut saw. early primitive huts or houses with the top and bottom and then a zig- shingle roofs. zag cut would be made from top to The slabs were split with maul and wedges. The early settler only had modest bottom and the whole sheet of bark peeled off in one piece. The art of tools and labour so he built in the As regards early huts etc. nails preparing the bark for the roof so first instance the most modest were virtually dwelling. unprocurable and all jointing was The average either by mortice settler’s tool or with tenon or consisted of dowel pegs. perhaps an adze, several Yet another sizes of augurs variation of the and the like, a slab hut was the hand-made ‘drop hatch’ driving maul and construction. a set of splitting wedges, an axe, Much more a broad or demanding in squaring axe, skill than its more several common vertical hammers, a slab brother, it crosscut saw and possibly a was considered a more substantial The Coble family home at Yass shovel, crowbar and pick or construction, though in actual fact in the 1860s (the author’s mattock. it has not really proved to be. paternal grandmother’s family). Slabs were mostly adzed both Often the new house beside the Possibly among the greater skills inside and outside. older one and the other was was the selection and preparation Continued page 3 of the materials. used for other purposes. HERITAGE 2 March – April 2014 ‘Another era of an early colonial dwelling has passed…’ A hut is generally considered to be A somewhat later development All posts, door and window a dwelling of two rooms – one many of these dwellings had all openings were usually channelled portion the living quarters and the refinements including glass down each side. other the sleeping area. windows. The specially prepared slabs were On the other hand there have been In the primitives the windows were then dropped into their correct and still are some quite substantial just small opening doors recesses from the top of the wall homes of slab. suspended on leather or green and thus laid horizontally one over hide to act as hinges. the other. Many of these larger slab homes provided comfortable living. Often the split inside of the slab More often than not the fireplace was adzed to smooth it down and was externally of slab with an Many had wooden floors and often often a verandah was attached interior of clay and stone. plaster-lined and offered many over the one end and only door refinements. entrance. Some refinements included the caulking between the slabs with Such places are to be seen still in It is a tribute to the builders and clay mortar generally mixed with use in many areas of eastern their selection of timbers that their animal urine or ox blood. Australia. durability is responsible for their continued use today. Later strips of zinc or galvanised The earlier dwellings were often iron were tacked between the lined with newspapers which were They have outlived their bark or slabs. continually added to, eventually shingle roof and are to be seen getting quite thick. with replaced galvanised iron. Very often in the primitive huts the earthen floors were of clay, cow The ceiling was often just Many of them owe the change to dung and urine, which made a fine suspended hessian or calico. iron for the inclusion of an hard floor. additional verandah or so. Another era of an early colonial dwelling has passed with the advancement of time. Pictured above a slab hut in the village of Duramana, some 15 kilometres north west of Bathurst. Photograph courtesy Ken Goodlet. At left: a slab hut in Queensland ca 1880. Couretsy Queensland State Library. Continued page 4 HERITAGE 3 March – April 2014 axe but with the head mounted The rotation of the blade causes Those amazing perpendicular to the handle. the material to move out of the Augur: A drilling device, or drill bit, hole being drilled. slab huts that usually includes a rotating Broadaxe: A large broad headed Continued from page 3 helical screw blade called a axe used for shaping logs by Building implements and their ‘flighting’ to act as a screw hewing. meanings : conveyor to remove the drilled out Maul: A large hammer, heavy Adze: An ancient type of edge tool material. wood splitting tool resembling both dating back to the stone-age. axe and hammer. Used for smoothing or carving wood in hand working, similar to an ABOUT THE AUTHOR PAUL WHEELDON the author of HERITAGE’s front This will be a history of the church and those who are page story, Those amazing slab huts is a member of interred in the cemetery.