[AT] OT Barn floor question

[Robinson]

At 10:18 PM 10/18/04, you wrote:
>Weren't the "uppity-up" horse barns paved with wood blocks?  I can't
>remember the correct name for it, but it's wooden blocks placed on end
>so the end grain of the wood is the floor surface.  It's similar to
>parquet, but that's not what it's called -- built like a butcher block.
>If I remember correctly the carriage house of the Reitz home here in
>Evansville still has some of the original stall floor left that is like
>that, and so is the stables/restaurant at the Biltmore in Ashville.
>Wood 4X4's about a foot long -- set on end in sand.
>
>Larry
>
>-



Hi Larry:

         Those are called "puncheon" floors... The old high school wood 
shop here had those. They seemed to work very well. The shop in the new 
high school where I went my senior year just had concrete. I took down a 
chicken house on an uncles place that had one. Well, actually a tornado 
took it down, I just cleaned up the mess for them. The one in the school 
shop was almost perfect and I always assumed that there was a concrete 
floor under it. A lot of the old ones were treated with creosote or oil. I 
seem to recall puncheon also referring to some kind of use of animal grease ?

         Here is a definition from a 1913 Websters:
Definition:
\<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/punch>Punch"<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/eon>eon\, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/n>n. 
[<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/f>F. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/poin>poin[,<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/c>c]<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/on>on 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/awl>awl, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/bodkin>bodkin, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/crown>crown,
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/king>king-<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/post>post, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/fr>fr. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/l>L. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/punctio>punctio 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>a 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/pricking>pricking, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/fr>fr. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/pungere>pungere 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/to>to 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/prick>prick.
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/see>See 
{<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/pungent>Pungent}, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/and>and 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/cf>cf. 
{<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/punch>Punch} 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>a 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/tool>tool, 
{<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/punction>Punction}.]
1. <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>A 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/figured>figured 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/stamp>stamp, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/die>die, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/or>or 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/punch>punch, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/used>used 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/by>by 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/goldsmiths>goldsmiths,
    <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/cutlers>cutlers, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/etc>etc.

2. (<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/carp>Carp.) 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>A 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/short>short, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/upright>upright 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/piece>piece 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/of>of 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/timber>timber 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/in>in 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/framing>framing; 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>a
    <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/short>short 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/post>post; 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/an>an 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/intermediate>intermediate 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/stud>stud. 
--<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/oxf>Oxf. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/gloss>Gloss.

3. <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>A 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/split>split 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/log>log 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/or>or 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/heavy>heavy 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/slab>slab 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/with>with 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/the>the 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/face>face 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/smoothed>smoothed; 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/as>as, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>a
    <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/floor>floor 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/made>made 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/of>of 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/puncheons>puncheons. 
[<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/u>U.<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/s>S.] 
--<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/bartlett>Bartlett.

4. [<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/f>F. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/poin>poin[,<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/c>c]<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/on>on, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/perh>perh. 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/the>the 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/same>same 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/as>as 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/poin>poin[,<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/c>c]<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/on>on 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/an>an 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/awl>awl.] 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/a>A
    <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/cask>cask 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/containing>containing, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/sometimes>sometimes 
84, 
<http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/sometimes>sometimes 
120, <http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary//dictionary/gallons>gallons.


         I remember the floors in the wood shop at BSU in the early 1960's. 
Somebody had a "stupid attack"... They were maple hardwood floors with a 
thick finish and waxed so much that you could hardly stand up on them. I 
remember trying to plane boards by hand and not being able to keep my feet 
under me while pushing hard enough to plane the wood.


"farmer"

Francis Robinson
Central Indiana, USA
robinson at svs.net