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  • Powder Magazine

    Powder Magazine

  • Church

    Church

  • Mud and Stud

    Mud and Stud

  • Rowhouse

    Rowhouse

Jamestown Settlement

Jamestown, VA

Replica 1607 Buildings (7) at Jamestown Fort

Roland McPherson and McPherson Design Group worked closely with the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation on the design of these replica buildings that were originally built within the Fort in 1607. Roland worked with the Master Carpenter from Jamestown utilizing the information provided by the archeologist, William Kelso. Mr. Kelso provided the locations of the actual posts in the ground and Roland and the Master Carpenter designed a building that would replicate each typical building for that period:

  • Powder Magazine: This building was constructed with post and beam endwall construction and included jointery that was utilized in England for over 300 years. The exterior of the building was designed with heavier construction, including wood siding, so that if an explosion should occur, the concussion of the explosion would be kept mainly within the inside of the building. The roof was constructed of a shiplap roof with scar joints.

  • Church: The design included jointery that dated back to the 15th century in England. The roof for the church was designed as a thatch roof. Walls for the structure were waddle and daub. Joints were mortise and tenon with wood pegs.

  • Mud & Stud Building: The building was built square at one end, then skewed as it approached the other end of the building. It is believed that people who were not taking the time and energy to construct the building in a normal organized way quickly constructed this building. The building consisted of sidewall construction where the sides of the building are constructed in a flat position on the ground and then tilted up into position with the post set in pre-dug holes. The replica structure has a waddle and daub exterior and thatch roof. Jointery for the building included joints that were utilized for over 300 years in England.

  • Cape Merchant’s Office

  • Buttery

  • Storehouse

  • Barracks

 

Rowhouse - Repairs to Sill Plate

McPherson Design Group completed this project in 2014, which included initial field investigation to drill holes in the sill to determine limits of deterioration and sketch the load path to be used in the design of shoring; completing calculations on the loads that are applied to the sill; researching locust versus black walnut material versus other wood options; providing sketches for shoring, splicing, and sequence of construction notes; developing an estimated cost of construction; and meeting at the site to present the final recommendations.