Log house - Definition

A log home (or log house) is technically the same thing as a log cabin, a house typically made from logs that have not been milled into conventional lumber. The term log home is contemporary and preferred by most log home builders, while log cabin indicates a smaller, more rustic, log house, such as a hunting cabin in the woods.

Log homes were built for centuries in Scandinavia, Russia and Eastern Europe. Swedish settlers brought the craft to North America in the early 1700s, where it was quickly adopted by other colonizers. In the 1920s, the first milled log houses appeared on the market, using logs that were precut and shaped, rather than hand-hewn. Most log homes today are of this type.

Today's log homes are far from rustic. They often exceed the cost of traditional houses and come with ammenities that would be expected in any substantial home. Every year, several thousand new log homes are built in North America.

External links

• Log Homes Illustrated Magazine (http://www.loghomesillustrated.com/r5/home.asp)
• Log Home Builder's Association (http://www.loghomebuilders.org/)
• International Log Builders' Association (http://www.logassociation.org/)