Witch window
In American vernacular architecture, a witch window (also known as a Vermont window, among other names) is a window (usually a double-hung sash window, occasionally a single-sided casement window) placed in the gable-end wall of a house[1] and rotated approximately 1/8 of a turn (45 degrees) from the vertical, leaving it diagonal, with its long edge parallel to the roof slope.[1][2] This technique allows a builder to fit a full-sized window into the long, narrow wall space between two adjacent roof lines, where a window would not otherwise fit.
Witch windows are found almost exclusively in or near the U.S. state of
Etymology
The name "witch window" appears to come from a
Construction
The solution is to rotate the window until its long edge is parallel to the nearby roof line, to better maximize the space available for a window.[1] Thus, not only is the window area (and thus incoming light and ventilation) maximized, but building or buying a custom window is avoided.[4][10]
An alternative explanation for the orientation of the window is that getting at least one corner of a window up as far as possible in the interior of the house allows hot air (which rises to the top of the room) to escape on summer afternoons.[5] However, this reasoning seems suspect, as Vermont is not as hot as many other locations,[11] where the windows are not ubiquitous.[1] If heat escape were the goal, diagonal windows could be placed in other walls as well.
The slanted orientation of the window can complicate the placement of the
In popular culture
- The Weird Window Brewing company, based in South Burlington, Vermont, was named for witch windows. One of the windows is depicted in the brewery's logo.[12]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g George Nash, Renovating Old Houses: Bringing New Life to Vintage Homes. The Taunton Press, Newtown, Connecticut, 2003, p. 8.
- ^ a b c d Howard Frank Mosher, A Stranger in the Kingdom Archived 2019-12-15 at the Wayback Machine, Houghton Mifflin Co., New York, 1989 (republished 2002), p. 46.
- ^ a b c d e Justin Falango, "Architectural Details: New England Archived 2020-01-11 at the Wayback Machine", Dover, Kohl & Partners, May 26, 2011; accessed 2012.04.23.
- ^ a b Kathryn Eddy. Building Blocks: Exploring witch windows Archived 2020-04-07 at the Wayback Machine Barre Montpelier Times Argus. July 30, 2012.
- ^ a b Vermont--diagonal "witch windows" in houses Archived 2012-03-20 at the Wayback Machine "The Straight Dope".
- ^ Evan Coughlin, Window That Fends Off Witches?, Newslinc, October 14, 2010; accessed 2012.02.15. Archived January 11, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ For more about witches flying through windows, see Angelique Van Engelen, "What Made Witches Fly?" (http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Made-Witches-Fly?&id=484076), Ezine Articles, August 12, 2010.
- ^ a b De la Cruz, Pacita T. (1984). "8419 Germantown Avenue". Adaptive re-use: An Early Twentieth Century Approach in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, by Dr. George Woodward, Developer, and Herman Louis Duhring, Jr., Architect (Master's thesis). Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania. p. 147 (pdf p.307). Archived from the original on 2018-12-25. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
- ^ Catasterist, Free & Clear (and also witch windows) Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine, September 2010. Accessed 2010.12.14.
- Vermont Public Radio, July 12, 2017.
- ^ See Matt Sutkoski, "Vermont is hot, but not like elsewhere", Burlington Free Press, August 5, 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "Weird Window Brewing", Vermont Brewers Association; accessed 2021.08.16.
Further reading
- Herbert Wheaton Congdon, Old Vermont Houses: 1763-1850, 1940 (reprinted 1968, Noone House, Peterborough, N.H.).
- David G. De Long, Helen Searing, and Robert A.M. Stern, eds., American Architecture: Innovation and Tradition, Rizzoli, New York, 1986.
- Thomas C. Hubka, Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn: The Connected Farm Buildings of New England, University Press of New England, Hanover, N.H., 1984.
- Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, A Guide to Vermont Architecture, reprinted 1996, Montpelier, Vermont.