ARCHITECTURAL TERMS AS DEFINED IN VARIOUS BUILDING LAWS, COMPILED BY THE AMERICAN ARCHITECT AND BUILDING (Republished by permission of Ticknor & Co.) TERMS DEFINED. [The following terms chance to be defined in sundry building codes-which are mentioned in each case. The fact that other codes are not mentioned is not necessarily a proof that the term is not also elsewhere in use as defined.] Adjoining Owner.-The owner of the premises adjoining those on which work is doing or to be done. [District of Columbia.] Alteration. Any change or addition except necessary repairs in, to, or upon any building affecting an external, party, or partition wall, chimney, floor, or stairway, and "to alter " means to make such change or addition. [Boston and Denver.] Appendages.-Dormer-windows, cornices, mouldings, bay-windows, towers, spires, ventilators, etc. [Chicago, Minneapolis.] Areas. Sub-surface excavations adjacent to the building-line for lighting or ventilation of cellars or basements. [District of Columbia.] Attic Story.-A story situated either in whole or in part in the roof. [Denver and District of Columbia.] Base." The base of a brick wall" means the course immediately above the foundation wall. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Basement Story.-One whose floor is 12" or more below the sidewalk, and whose height does not exceed 12' in the clear; all such stories that exceed 12' high shall be considered as first stories. [Chicago, Louisville.] A story whose floor is 12" or more below the grade of sidewalk. [Milwaukee.] A story whose floor is 3' or more below the sidewalk, and whose height does not exceed 11' in the clear; all such stories that exceed 11' high shall be con sidered as first stories. [Minneapolis.] A story suitable for habitation, partially below the level of the adjoining street or ground. [District of Columbia and Denver.] 1 (See Cellar.) Bay-window.-A first-floor projection for a window other than a tower-projection or show-window. [District of Columbia.] Any projection for a window other than a show-window. [Denver.] 1 And below the first floor of joists. [District of Columbia.] Bearing Walls.-Those on which beams, trusses, or girders rest. [New York and San Francisco.] Brick Building.-A building the walls of which are built of brick, stone, iron, or other substantial and incombustible materials. [Boston, Denver, and Kansas City.] Building. Any construction within the scope and purview of these regula tions. [District of Columbia.] Building Line. The line of demarcation between public and private space. [District of Columbia.] Building Owner. The owner of premises on which work is doing or to be done. [District of Columbia.] Business buildings shall embrace all buildings used principally for business purposes, thus including, among others, hotels, theatres, and office-buildings. [Chicago, Louisville, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis.] Cellar.-Basement or lower story of any building, of which one-half or more of the height from the floor to the ceiling is below the level of the street1 adjoining.2 [Boston, Denver, and Kansas City.] Portion of building below first floor of joists, if partially or entirely below the level of the adjoining parking, street, or ground, and not suitable for habitation. [District of Columbia.] Cement-mortar.-A proper proportion of cement and sand without the admixture of lime. [Kansas City.] Division Wall.--One that separates part of any building from another part of the same building. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Floor-bearing walls extending through buildings from front to rear, and separating stores and tenements in buildings or blocks owned by the same party. [Minneapolis.] (See Partition-wall.) Dwelling-house Class.-All buildings except public buildings and buildings of the warehouse class. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Shall not apply to buildings accommodating more than three families. [San Francisco.] External Wall.-Every outer wall or vertical enclosure of a building other than a party-wall. [Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, District of Columbia, Kansas City, and Providence.] First Story. The story the floor of which is at or first above the level of the sidewalk or adjoining ground, the other stories to be numbered in regular succession, counting upward. [Denver and District of Columbia.] Footing Course.-A projecting course or courses under base of foundation wall. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Foundation. That portion of wall below level of street cur),3 and, where the wall is not on a street, that portion of wall below the level of the highest ground next to the wall. [Boston, Kansas City, New York, and Providence.] Portion of exterior wall below surface of adjoining earth or pavement, and portion of partition or party wall below level of basement or cellar floor. [District of Columbia and Denver.] Foundation, Basement, or Cellar Walls.-That part of walls of building that are below the floor or joists, which are on or next above the grade line. [Detroit.] 1 Ground. [Providence.] 2 And not suita le for habitation. [Denver.] 3 And serve as supports for piers, columns, girders, beams, or other walls." [New York.] Portion of the wall below the level of street curb, in front of the central line of building. [San Francisco.] Incombustible scantling partition.-One plastered on both sides upon iron lath or wire cloth, and filled in with brickwork 8" high from floor, provided the building is not over 80' high. [Chicago.] Incombustible Roofing.-Covered with not less than three (3) thicknesses roofing-felt, and good coat of tar and gravel, or with tin, corrugated-iron, or other fire-resisting material with standing-seam or lap-joint. [Denver.] Lengths. Walls are deemed to be divided into distinct lengths by return walls, and the length of every wall is measured from the centre of one return wall to the centre of another, provided that such return walls are external or party cross-walls of the thickness herein required, and bonded into the walls so deemed to be divided. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Inflammable Material.-Dry goods, clothing, millinery, and the like in stores, flyings or goods in factories, or other substance readily ignited by droppings or flyings from electric lights. [Minneapolis.] Lodging-house.—A building in which persons are temporarily accommodated with sleeping 1 apartments, and includes hotels. [Boston and Kansas City.] 1 Any building or portion thereof in which persons are lodged for hire for less than a week at one time. [District of Columbia and Providence.] Any building or portion thereof in which persons are lodged for hire temporarily, and includes hotels. [Denver.] Mansard Roof.-One formed with an upper and under set of rafters, the upper set more inclined to the horizon than the lower set. [Denver and District of Columbia.] Oriel Window.-A projection for a window above the first floor. [District of Columbia.] Partition. An interior division constructed of iron, glass, wood, lath and plaster, or other destructible natures. [District of Columbia.] Partition-wall.-Any interior wall of masonry in a building. [Boston. Kansas City, and Providence.] An interior wall of non-combustible material. [District of Columbia.] Any interior division constructed of iron, glass, wood, lath and plaster, or any combination of those materials. [Denver.] (See Division Wall.) Party-wall.-Every wall used, or built, in order to be used, as a separation of two or more buildings.2 [Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Kaneas City, and Providence.] A wall built upon dividing line between adjoining premises for their common use. [District of Columbia.] Parking. The space between the sidewalk and the building line. [District of Columbia.] Parking Line. The line separating parking and sidewalk. [District of Columbia.] Public Building.--Every building used as church, chapel, or other place of public worship; also every building used as a college, school, public hall, hospital, theatre, public concert-room, public ball-room, public lecture-room, or for any public assemblage. [Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Kansas City, and Minneapolis.] Such buildings as shall be owned and occupied for public purposes for this 1 Staying apartments. [Kansas City.] 2 To be used jointly by separate buildings. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] State, the United States, the corporation of the City of Brooklyn, or other public schools within said city. [Brooklyn.] Public Hall.-Every theatre, opera-house, hall, church, school, or other building intended to be used for public assemblage. [Milwaukes and Louisville.} Return Wall.-No wall subdividing any building shall be deemed a return wall, as before mentioned, unless it is two-thirds the height of the external or party-walls. [Cincinnati and Cleveland.] Shed. A skeleton structure for storage or shelter. [District of Columbia.] Open structure, enclosed only on one side and end, and erected on the ground. San Francisco.j Open or closed board structure. [Denver.] Show-window.-A store-window in which goods are displayed for sale or advertisement. [District of Columbia and Denver.] Square thereof.-The square or level of the walls before commencing the pitch for roof. [District of Columbia.] Standard Depth for Foundations. For brick and stone buildings, 14′ below curb line. [San Francisco.] Standard Depth of Cellars.-16', measured down from sidewalk grade at property line. [Memphis.] Standard Iron Door.-Made of No. 12 plate-iron, frame or continuous 12" x 2" x 3" angle-iron, firmly riveted. Two panel doors, to have proper crossbars, one panel on either side, fastened together with hooks or proper bolts top and bottom, and with not less than two lever-bars. All doors hung on iron frames of " x 4" iron, securely bolted together through wall, swung on three hinges, fitting close to frame all around; sill between doors, iron, brick, or stone, to rise not less than two (2) inches above floor on each side of opening. Lintel over door, brick, iron, or stone. Floors of basement, when doors are to swing, stone or cement, in no case wood. [Denver.] Standard Skylight.-Constructed of wrought-iron frames, with hammered or desk-light glass not less than 1" thick; not larger than 10' by 12', except by special permission of the Inspector. [Denver.] Storehouse.-(See Warehouse Class.) Street.-All streets, avenues, and public alleys. [Minneapolis.] Tenement-house.-A building which, or any portion of which, is to be occupied, or is occupied, as a dwelling by more than three 1 families living independently of one another, and doing their cooking upon the premises. Denver, and Kansas City.] [Boston, Or by more than two families 2 above the second floor, so living and cooking. [Boston and Kansas City.] Building which shall contain more than two rooms in front on each floor, or which shall be built with a passage or arched way between distinct parts of the same building, or which building shall be intended for the separate accommodation of different families or occupants. [Charleston.] Theatre. Public hall containing movable scenery or fixed scenery which is not made of metal, plaster, or other incombustible material. [Chicago, Louisville, and Milwaukee.] Thickness of a Wall.-The minimum thickness of such wall. [Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Providence.] 1 Two instead of three. [District of Columbia and Minneapolis.] Upon one floor, but having a common right in the halls, stairways, yards, etc. [Providence.] 3 As applied to solid walls. [Minneapolis and Providence.] Tinned Covered Fire-door.-Wood doors or shutters, double thickness of wood, cross or diagonal construction, covered on both sides and all edges with sheet-tin, joints securely clinched and nailed. [Denver.] Tower Projection.—A projection designed for an ornamental door-entrance, for ornamental windows, or for buttresses. [District of Columbia.] Vault. An underground construction beneath parking or sidewalk. [District of Columbia.] Veneered Building.-Frame structure, the walls covered above the sill by a 4" wall of brick, instead of clapboards. [Common understanding in Chicago, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis, but not defined by law.] Warehouse Class.-Buildings used for the storage of merchandise, manufactories in which machinery is operated, breweries, and distilleries. [Cincinnati and St. Louis.] Width of buildings shall be computed by the way the beams are placed; the lengthwise of the beams shall be considered and taken to be the widthwise of the building. [New York and San Francisco.] Wholesale store, or storehouse, shall embrace all buildings used (or intended to be used) exclusively for purpose of mercantile business or storage of goods. [Chicago, Louisville, and Milwaukee.] Wooden Building.-A wooden or frame 1 building. [Boston, Kansas City, and Minneapolis.] Any building of which an external or party wall is constructed in whole or, in part of wood. [Denver and District of Columbia.] Having more wood on the outside than that required for the door and window frames, doors, shutters, sash-porticos, and wooden steps, and all frame buildings or sheds, although the sides and ends are proposed to be covered with corrugated iron or other metal, shall be deemed a wooden building under this law. [Charles éon and Nashville.] Or veneered. [Minneapolis.] |