Collier huts

While producing charcoal, colliers stayed in temporary huts. Colliers tended to multiple Charcoal Hearths while they lived on the mountain. Each hearth took approximately two weeks to complete. While a collier would mind a hearth closely for the first couple of days, after that, he would spend time starting a new hearth. Colliers could typically tend up to eight hearths at a time. Template:Citation needed

Construction

Collier huts were conical, with a base 8 feet across and 10 feet high. Three inch poles were used as the basic structure and the spaces between them were filled in with smaller poles. The basic structure was wood, with leaves and soil acting as insulation and filling in the gaps between posts. Additionally, collier huts had a small door, a hearth, and wooden cots.

Location

A collier would construct his hut in a location as central to the charcoal pits he was burning as possible, and layed-out the hut so that the door faced the pits. Throughout the burning process, the charcoal hearths required constant tending throughout the day and night. If a collier let the fire consume his wood completely, he would be charged for its loss so proximity to one's hearths was very important.

References

• Kemper, Jackson. 1941. American Charcoal Making in the Era of the Cold-Blast Furnace. History 14. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior; National Park Service.
• Walker, Joseph E. 1966. Hopewell Village; a Social and Economic History of an Iron-Making Community. Philadelphia,: Univ. of Pennsylvania Press.