The Forestry Forum

General Forestry => Timber Framing/Log construction => Topic started by: Don P on May 16, 2021, 07:57:36 AM

Title: Biltmore construction pics
Post by: Don P on May 16, 2021, 07:57:36 AM
I just finished "The Last Castle" (meh) and was looking for more on the actual construction.
There are some neat construction photos from when they were building Biltmore here;
The Construction of Biltmore House - Biltmore (https://www.biltmore.com/blog/the-construction-of-biltmore-house/)

Lots of gin poles and shear leg cranes at work. There are more online with a quick image search. It was built mostly of brick and then covered in Indiana limestone. They were making up to 30,000 bricks per day. In the late 70's a bunch of us were camping out in one of Vanderbilt's old log hunting cabins back in the forest. When he would entertain his wealthy friends they would ride out on hunts on the huge estate and stay in these if far from the mansion. His forestry school, the first in the country, also used them as working quarters. A work crew came in and began clearing a helicopter landing zone while we were there. That cabin is now relocated at the Cradle of Forestry. I guess we were the last ones to see it in its original setting in the woods.