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Researching the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site of Canada
  Recherche sur la Forteresse-de-Louisbourg Lieu historique national du Canada

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 NOTE ON DRAINS, GUTTERS, 
BEVELLED BOARDS, AND 
BOUSILLAGE SENT TO 
SUSANNE MYERS BY ERIC KRAUSE 

BY
 ERIC KRAUSE

DECEMBER 2, 2002

Krausehouse Info-Research Solutions

(1) HANGARD D’ARTILLERIE

A quick look at the information I have on hand on my laptop doesn’t really provide any new insights on this.

... "The hangard proved to be most unsuitable for storing wood, since the roof leaked and it. was almost continually full of water [31]. Le Normant explained in 1738 that this was because Verrier had not had time in 1736 to lower the level of the street beside the hangard. However he had since lowered the street level and the level of the courtyard [33]. He and Verrier rejected St. Ovide's recommendation to raise the walls of the building and form a second storey, and to replace the slate roof by a shingled one [33, 34]. Bigot did not seem worried about the condition of the gun carriages which he stored in the hangard in 1744 [35].

The English described the hangard as a barn "having neither ceiling, pavement or floor", and considered it to be badly situated [37]. They made several repairs to the building [36] which included levelling, dressing and cleaning out the Ordnance Shot Yard [38], removing stores from. the old Ordinance Storehouse, placing new stores in it [39], cleaning the Old Storehouse, piling and organizing shot and shells in the Ordnance Shot Yard [40], cutting a gutter down Gun Lane [38], and sorting stores in order to take a General Remain [41] ...."

"... The hangard was always subject to a drainage problem. In 1738, Verrier lowered the level of the street to 18 pouces below the floor level of the building, and the courtyard to 1 pied below floor level [34] - apparently with little effect. He stated that the slope of the street and of the courtyard was 4 pieds. The English built a gutter along the Rue du Petit Etang in 1747 [38], but the drainage problem still remained in the 1750's [49]..."

" ... Fanquet reported in 1753 that the hangard still tended to be filled with water in the winter (two feet!). He recommended that the walls be raised and an attic be added to the building [49]. By 1754, Franquet had moved all the supplies out of the hangard because of the dampness. He again recommended that a second storey be added, to be used as a salle aux armes, an armourer's shop and a storehouse [51]. The imminence of war prevented this scheme from being carried out [53] ..."

"... The English reported in 1758 that the Stone Carriage Shed had burned in the time of the French [60]. They must have made some repairs to the building because it appears on plan 767-1 as the King's Arseral, and on plan 768-1 as the King's Stables ..."

" ...

[Linda Hoad, Supervised by Blaine Adams, Block 1, Boulangerie, Hangard d’Artillerie, New England Storehouse (Fortress of Louisbourg Unpublished Report H D 08, May 1967) - footnotes unavailable at this time]

July 29, 1747

... Pioneers ... Gravelling on the Strand ... cutting a Gutter in Gun lane down to the

Strand ...

[Library of Congress, AC 2444, July 29, 1747]

In July, the men cut a gutter between [Quay] rampart and the causeway, to drain off the water below Gun street [Rue de Rampart].

[Library of Congress, AC 2444, July 31, 1747]

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(I)

(a) "By making a new spoute 25 feet @ 8d ---- [0] 16 8 ..." [f. 17v, May 26, 1757]

(b) "To cash paid E: Wentworth for 54 feet of Gutters ...

To 300 Duble Tens 4/9 1/2 & 250 Single Tens 2/8 ...

To 5 Ceder posts for the Fence @ 2/....

To 276 feet Merchanable Bords ...

To 60 feet Clear D.^o 5/ & 2.^lb deck Nails 1/4 ...

To one Stinge for a Gaite 8.^d, to Drink 8d. ...

To Dog’s for the Spouts p Barkers Bill ..." [f. 220, March 31, 1760. Note: Expect for the omitted price totals, this listing is a complete account]

(c) "... By 60 feet Boards @ 7d 35/, working a Gutter 30/ 3 ‘ 5 ~ " [f. 105v, March 25, 1777]

(d) "By twice primeing the Gutters or Spouts for my Hou^se ~[0] ~ [12] ~ [0] ..."

[f. 108v, September 27, 1781]

(e) "By clearing & putting up one Spout &c 6/8 ... [f. 124v, May 2 & 3, [1787]

[Massachusetts Historical Society, John Tudor papers, 1732-1793]

.............................................................................................

(II)

(a)

" ... to Laying 7500 Shingles @ 45^s/ 16-17-6

60 feet of Hips & gutters @ 4^s/ 12- 0-0

to 38 feet of trunks with bords @ 5^s/ 9- 10-0

to 67 feet of Cornish guter @ 5^s/ 16-15-0

to 6 feet of trunk over kitchen ------ 1-10-0

mending bording on kitchen -------- 1- 0-0" [July 13, 1751]

(b)

William Welsted J^r to 19 feet of Spout @ 2 1-18- 0

to 4 Large Spikes for gutters 0-14- 0

to 104 feet of marchantabel 2- 7-10

Laying 125 Clapbords bords ea @ 46^s@ 2-10- 0

to 63 feet of Scribeing to @ 6d -------------- 1- 1- 6

mending ye Coucing --------------------------- 1- 0- 0

to 17 feet of watherbords @ @ 1/6 --------- 1- 5- 6

to 39 feet of Gussboard & Back bords d to 2-18- 6 [July 27, 1751]

(c) "Jacob Wendel D^r to 12 feet of Joyce for heads of trunks @ 9^d ...." [July 30, 1751]

(d)

"Samuel Barot D^r dd John Bacon

to 24 feet of Cand for guter @ 2/9^d 3-6-0

to 104 feet of Cler bord pied @ 9d 4-1-0 [August 12, 1751]

- At the end of the Book there were some rules. Some examples:

(a) "Rule for the head of a trunk is to make it 2 feet from the top of the Cornish to the uper part of the holon & the holon to be 5 Inches So thee blocks are 2 feet & 5 inches Long"

(b) "1751 price of Dorick Cornish Guter inCluded 35^s pr foot old ten for one pilaster 12 £oit charged for Sheleye House"

(c) "muldiloun Cornis [Crossed out] Coueing guter inCluded at ye town house 20^£/ a foot"

[Massachusetts Hiastorical Society, Benjamin Eustis Account Book (1749-1757)]

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200 Greenleaf Drive,

Lafayette, Louisiana,

70506

The Acadien Village "is a replica of a latter 1800 Acadian Village." Some of the buildings are modern reconstructions; others are original buildings moved to the site. Of most interest to the Fortress are the Aurelie Bernard House ("Constructed in St. Martinville, the Bernard House is the oldest structure in the Village. The section on the left was built first (circa 1800) while that on the right is an addition, (1840)"); the Thibodeaux House ("The house dates to circa 1820 and came to Acadian Village from the Breaux area"); and the Castille Home ("This historic landmark at the Village was built for Dorsene Castille (circa 1860) in Breaux Bridge by a European of whom little is known ...").

Of greatest interest are the horizontal bevelled board sidings on the ground floor fronts of the Bernard (1800 section) and Castille wood-frame houses. In both cases, the sidings exist under a protective gallery, while the remaining exposed walls are clapboarded. On the Bernard house, the bevelled siding was nailed to the uprights with cut-nails.

All three buildings were also in-filled with "bousillage entre poteaux." In particular, the Bernard fill was described as earth and spanish moss mixed together and applied to braces ("barreaux") set between the framing posts:

"The houses which are built of mud is mix’d with moss, with which every tree is nearly cover’d. it is put up by hand, without the use of a trowel, on shelves placed from one frame to the other, and becomes very hard and strong when thoroughly dry. Some plaster over, some white wash only, and the poorer class leave them in their original state, owing to the scarcity of lime. then only resource being to bring clam shells from the lakes, or oyster shells from the sea shore to make it of [Diary of James Leander Cathcart upon his visit to Acadian Country - 1819 - NOTE: An attempt should be made to obtain a loan copy of this diary to determine if it contains other references of use to the Fortress]

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