Shed Plans

Comfort Starr House, Circa 1645, Guilford, Connecticut

History

The Saltbox design was first seen in New England. It was made popular by a tax instituded by Queen Anne on houses more than one story. Since the roof descended in the rear of the house to only one story, the house was exempt from the tax. The term “saltbox” comes from the resemblance to the wooden lidded boxes in which salt used to be stored in early colonial times.

The first Saltbox houses were built when a simple lean-to addition was added onto the back of the original house. This created a much longer rear roof. Another charecturistic of the saltbox design was a centeral chimney.

These houses were popular and quite common from the middle of the seventeenth century into the early eighteen hundreds. This design is now more often seen in sheds and barns than houses.

Saltbox Sheds

The biggest functional difference in a saltbox shed is the placement of the door. The door of the shed is on what would usually be the side of a typical shed. This allows the saltbox shed to sit sideways, as compared to a typical A frame shed.

This can work very well when the shed needs to be placed up against something and still not stick out to far. Mostly it is another design to choose from. If you know your needs, this may work better for you than another shed design.

You are the best one to make that choice. Remember with a saltbox shed you will generally have a double door in the center of a wide space. This will work well for storing tools and other smaller items. Probably not the best option if you plan to store a riding lawn mower.

If your shed will be visible from your house pick a few locations that your saltbox shed may work. Stand back and take a look. Try to visualize whether a saltbox or other style of shed would be best.

One great thing about a saltbox shed is that is it’s kind of like having a bit of American colonial history in your own backyard.