Volume One

The Interpretation

Table of Contents

Preface

Terminology (Select)

Barre

For the purposes of this study, in French, the horizontal or diagonal (called écharpe) batten (i.e. nailer) of a board (set vertically) and batten shutter. In French, bar (as in contrevents barrés de trois barres or avec barres et écharpes.

Battant [batten, battan, batant]

In French, leaf (expressed or suggested), as of a single or two-leaf shutter (e.g. contrevent à deux battant or deux Doubles Contrevents et un Simple.)

Battens

For the purposes of this study, in English, the horizontal or diagonal battens (i.e. nailers) of a board (set vertically) and batten shutter.

Écharpe

See Barre.

Charpente or Colombage

See 1/2 Timber.

Emboîture

For the purposes of this study, the horizontal boards assembled, top and bottom, perpendicularly to the vertical boards of an emboîture shutter.

Measurements

12 Lignes = 1 Pouce

12 Pouces = 1 Pied

1/2 Timber

On Isle Royale and Isle St. Jean, a heavy wood-framed building type commonly described as charpente or, occasionally, as colombage, set upon a separate foundation.

Piquet

An earth-fast building type whose perimeter walls consisted of vertical logs.

Prices

12 Deniers = 1 Sol

20 Sols = 1 Livre

Private Sector

For the purposes of this report, that construction sector funded by private individuals, and commonly called today domestic or vernacular.

Public Sector

For the purposes of this report, that construction sector funded by the King (Royal), commonly called today government or public works.

SHUTTER

(I)

Incidence of Exterior Shutters

The record is clear: Exterior shutters were commonly found on the site of eighteenth-century Louisbourg. They appeared on all building types.

(II)

Styles of Exterior Shutters

Only two broad categories of exterior shutters appeared in the record: Emboîture and board and batten. Of the buildings carrying shutters of an unspecified nature, presumably then all were either of one or of the other of these two styles.

In the public sector, the many descriptions of how to assemble an emboîture shutter remained constant over the years, though materials did vary. In contrast, an official specification for the construct of a board and batten shutter appeared only once, in a written 1753 document. Here, was described a premier batten shutter, perhaps not unlike that which surfaced, as early as 1718, in this same sector.

Thus in the royal sector, the contracting system was to produce standard shutter specifications against which general construction was to proceed. Thus the chance for alternate styles, to those of batten and emboîture, to arise was minimal. Arguably, while the board and batten shutters on this sector's provisional piquet buildings of the post 1749 period were not up to the same standard as those of 1753, most certainly, in assembly, they were not unconventional.

Although private sector construction descriptions were short on detail, not surprisingly, they confirmed that both the emboîture and board and batten styles were present. So too, once in this sector, did there arise a shutter standard, though interestingly, the hired-builder was no less than the fortification contractor, and the building was of masonry.

(III)

Detailing of Exterior Shutters

As the historical record advanced from 1713 to 1758, at a certain point the shutter descriptions that came before seemed to coalesce into one standard, be it board and batten or emboîture. Then later, more descriptions, and another convergence, and so on, thus forming up through time an array of possible shutter constructs. Unfortunately, each of these possibilities was neither enough like the others as to form-up into a comprehensive batten or emboîture standard, or sufficiently different as to suggest the existence of many standards. In other words, were these descriptions simply variations of the same theme within the context of two shutter styles, or did they represent many themes swirling around the said two shutter choices?

For these reasons, and because certain time periods were better populated than others with descriptions, cautious, if not futile, would be the approach in determining which board and batten, or which emboîture, description was the more popular.

(A) Batten Shutter Descriptions

(1) A batten shutter may be constructed of 1-pouce thick vertical fir boards, tongued and grooved, planed both sides, with 2 or 3 battens. It will be held open either by 1 turnbuckle or else by 1 hook and eye; and held closed by 1 hook and 1 eye.

A batten shutter, at times, may use 2-pouce pine planks in its construction.

Given that, on occasion, there exists batten doors planed only one side, did like-finished shutters also exist on that same building?

(2) A provisional batten shutter, with some battens, may be fashioned using wood and nails. Mounted on 1 pair of strap hinges with its pintles, there will be 1 hook and 1 eye per shutter.

(3) A provisional batten shutter, of part tongued and grooved planed 2-pouce thick planks, of part tongued and grooved planed 1-pouce thick boards, with its battens may be fashioned using wood and nails. Mounted on 1 pair of strap hinges with its pintles, there will be 1 hook and 1 eye per shutter.

(4) For repair purposes, a batten shutter with some battens may be fashioned from 1-pouce thick boards rescued from salvaged materials.

(5) A custom fitted batten shutter will be constructed of planed two-sided, tongued and grooved pine boards, 1-pouce thick, with horizontal and diagonal oak battens, with the wood cut during the good season, without wane, square cut, and fashioned and assembled by good workers.

(B) Emboîture Shutter Descriptions

(1) An emboîture shutter may be constructed of appropriately finished 1-pouce thick vertical fir or pine boards, assembled, at each end, with well-pegged oak emboîtures, 5-6 pouces wide, placed horizontally. Mounted on a pair of 1-1/2 pieds long strap hinges with their pintles, it will be held open either by 1 turnbuckle or else by 1 hook and eye; and held closed by 1 hook and 1 eye.

Perhaps only for private sector constructions, when the vertical boards of the shutters are of fir, the emboîtures may be of fir. Likewise, when the vertical boards of the shutters are of pine, the emboîtures may be of pine.

(2) An emboîture shutter may be constructed of vertical pine boards, a full 1-pouce thick (even 1-1/4 pouces was an option), finished off at each end with horizontal wood-pegged oak or merisier [type of birch] emboîtures, everything well-planed, assembled tongued and grooved, using only dry and sound wood. Mounted on a pair of strap hinges with their pintles, it will be held open either by 1 turnbuckle or else by 1 hook and eye/keeper; and held closed by 1 hook and 1 eye/keeper. 1-1/2 pieds long strap hinges, 1-pieds long hooks, and wooden pegs and stoppers are all appropriate.

Given that at this time, on occasion, 1-pouce thick interior doors, of pine verticals and pine emboîtures, are being assembled, did like shutters also exist on that same building?

(3) A custom fitted emboîture shutter will be constructed of planed two sides, tongued and grooved pine boards, 1-pouce thick, fitted tongued and grooved style with oak emboîtures at both ends, with the wood cut during the good season, without wane, square cut, and fashioned and assembled by good workers.

(C) General Descriptions

(1) While shutter hooks utilized eyes (pitons) and keepers (tenons) as fasteners, staples (crampons) are a possible, if not infrequent, option.

(2) Once a month, ironwork will be repaired/replaced as required and oiled. Twice a year, in April and October, both the shutters and the ironwork will be inspected, to ensure that proper maintenance has occurred.

(3) Woodwork and ironwork will be painted as required. A mitigating factor before the first siege will be a paint shortage.

(4) A shutter may be mounted to the fixed frame, with 1 hook and 1 eye for closing. Couplet hinges are an option. [Inside shutters may also be mounted on the fixed frame.]

(5) A large boutique shutter may consist of 1 pair of strap hinges and their pintles, an iron pulley for opening and closing the shutter, and 3 hooks and 3 eyes for securing it closed.

(6) Shutters constructed from local 1-pouce thick fir and pine boards, (or sometimes from 2-pouce thick pine planks), originally 10-12 pouces wide, is an option.

(7) A shutter constructed from 1-pouce thick boards imported from Boston rather than obtained locally is an option from at least the 1720's onwards. These boards are, according to French standards, extremely wide, rarely being less than 15 pouces.

(8) A perception that oak and fir did not work well together may prove true over time.

(IV)

Situation in 1745

While any of the detailing possibilities discussed in Section III above are possible, decision makers ought to keep in mind the following shutter guidelines:

(1) In the Public Sector, the system preferred emboîture shutters, while opting for board and batten on occasion; in the Private Sector, builders and owners were free to chose either emboîture or board and batten as they wished or could afford.

(2) In both the Public and Private Sectors, shutter materials and size varied; in the Private Sector, assembly and finishing-off variations, particularly cost saving ones, were always a possibility.

(3) The only materials shortage at this time was paint, suggesting its conservative use.

(V)

Further Research

(1) A similar report concerning the incidence, styles and detailing of exterior shutters in the North American colonies of the period 1713-1758, combined with a separate shutter inventory based on published 18th-century French secondary sources as well as on modern local archaeological findings, would no doubt shed additional light on the Louisbourg experience.

(2) Where the consultant encountered shutter details and potential leads that were beyond the scope of this current report, he updated the DB/TextWorks database (htmemos.tba - Historical Technical Notes: Research Notes on 18th-Century Construction Techniques).

(3) The consultant will also post this report to the Louisbourg Institute website (fortress.uccb.ns.ca) where its webmaster will encourage outside opinion and further research leads.

 ~ (V) FURTHER RESEARCH