Can you identify type of wood from late 1700's and mid 1800's??

The best way to narrow it down is an on-site inspection by someone who knows wood, preferably someone who's familiar with the types of wood used in house construction in your area two hundred years ago.

But does it really matter? There's a solid consensus here that you have some species of softwood; most of the guys seem to think it's pine, but my money is still on spruce, but either way, what difference does it make?

All of it appears to be yellow and or white pine, the kitchen baffles me a bit but I'd hazard to guess that it could be birch. (I have seen it that tight and that colour.) Second guess would be Douglas Fir in the kitchen. But it almost certainly isn't cherry.

Forest Products Laboratories will identify it for you if you can provide them a sample. No charge--your tax dollars at work.

Related idea or "Who's Ya Daddy?" option: Send some "drill" samples to your local university for a student to do a DNA analysis, quite likely at no charge for a dedicated student in a diversified field (forestry-genetics), that way. I'm sure there is, also, an online site with reference to a facility that has DNA analysis results or some sort of comparative data. University of NC would likely have that info/data/student/etc., I'm thinking. Maybe, these days, even the Forestry Products Laboratory would have DNA data for identifying wood products. Note: What specific kind of DNA testing is required to be performed, if applicable?

Sonny

You have plenty of expert opinions. As someone who is a professional in old buildings I can tell you there is no way to positively identify a species from looking at it. Distinguishing between softwoods is especially difficult. if the timber is really felled in the eighteenth century it will not necessary fall into the categories of off the shelf building timber that you get today.

When I last spoke to a specialist in timber in old buildings he told me that the only judgement he would make with certainty by just looking at timber was to sometimes declare it 'not oak'. None of your floors are oak.

Tim W

That's a good thought but right now the development of a forestry DNA database is in its infancy.

It all looks like southern yellow pine, to me. Pretty common flooring in "common folk" housing straight through to the early 1900's (the 20's or so). It's harder than most pine and despite the "southern" designation, it grew up and down the eastern seaboard. The kitchen night be fir but I doubt it. The only 2 things that stick out about it is they are all even width (3"?) and there is some sapwood in it. All of the other rooms are all heartwood and random width.

None of it is cherry, for sure.

Ed

Yeah concensus seems to be it is all pine except probably (possibly?) the kitchen.

It matters to me though not in a life-or-death sort of matter. First, in a "sappy" sort of way, I have really bonded with my house and take great pride and interest in knowing all the details of its construction so that I can continue to maintain and restore it.

Second, there are some areas of flooring that I want to eventually patch and other areas that I might want to match when we do renovations. So, it would be helpful to know as precisely as possible what type of wood I am dealing with. Since the wood is old, I would like to be on the "lookout" for acquiring similar old samples ripped out of other houses that I would store for future use in my house -- but I can't do that without at least knowing more about the type of wood actually in my house.

Thanks again to all for the help here!

I'm a little baffled by the construction history. THe guest room and kitchen were built in the late 1700's, but the main part of the house in the 1860's?

I'm guessing the "main part" was a significant addition to a much smaller house. But the wood looks verrrry similar.

But it's OK, I'k often confused.

-Zz

There are a lot of resources out there for old growth lumber, especially flooring. I recently built a house where we bought structural pine from an old tobacco warehouse in North Carolina through a broker and had

Which in my experience as a builder, is not all that bad considering it was exactly what the client wanted.

There were a number of similar deals on the web, so there was plenty to pick and choose from.

A good place to start your search locally is a retailer that specializes in recycled products of all types, like this outfit in Austin which brokered the above deal:

Thanks -- all good advice!

If you shoot a 94% white or such sheet of paper and place a ruler in the shot - more information can be gained.

Mart> R>

FWIW.

Your 1st floor is *exactly* what I have the hallway of my in my 1860-built home in Northern NY.

Yes it is softwood, but significantly tougher than modern (new growth) pine. Sadly, I don't know what species it is.

-Steve

I once used some yellow pine to make a valance that matched the doug fir trim in my 1940s mother-in-law's house in Ontario. looks very much like it. Also larch or tamarack looks a lot like doug fir.

Could it not be red pine? IIRC it also has the same grain as yellow, but is softer.

The grain is too pronounced for white pine.

The 'elm' hypothesis is unlikely; that wood was notoriously difficult to work, and the time period suggests carbide saws were not in use. Old hardwood (of this vintage) could be American chestnut; it was widely used, before the blight took it all away. Or, almost all (there are reportedly some isolated stands remaining).

Yes - the "new" 1860's part is much fancier - Italianate Mansard. The late 1700's was probably more modest. Don't know the detailed history though...

Nope - you got it right.

I vote white pine, quartersawn in the kitchen.

I'm surpised nobody suggested getting a copy of Bruce Hoadley' "Identifying Wood" and a microscope & finding out what they really are. Hoadley is in your neck of the woods at the UofMass. at Amherst.