Building A Log Cabin

There are more than 700 log structures in the National Parks. Nearly all of these log cabins are considered historically significant, but more than 400 of these structures are in need of restoration work.

As you've learned on this Web site, General Ulysses S. Grant's Civil War headquarters cabin and Theodore Roosevelt's Maltese Cross Cabin were two historic log cabins located in National Parks that were restored in 2000. This restoration work is part of the "Restoration of America's Log Cabins" program, a partnership between the National Park Foundation (NPF) and Aurora Foods Inc., makers of Log Cabin syrup. The goal of this multi-year program has been to restore log structures in the Parks to preserve their history for generations to come.

While each of the log structures in the National Parks has its own unique characteristics and possesses its own historical stories, there are similarities in how log cabins are constructed. This section of the Web site shows you a log cabin located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park that was restored as part of the program in 1999.

Imagine that you are about to build your own log cabin. This activity provides information on what parts of a log structure are most often in need of restoration as time and the elements affect them.

View the image of the log cabin below and click on the different parts of this cabin (i.e., roof, door, chimney, etc.) to learn more about its construction and restoration.

Foundation
Wall Construction
Roof
Doors
Windows
Chimney

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