Chattel House

A chattel house is a small, portable timber house associated above all with Barbados. The name reflects its legal status as chattel, movable property, rather than real estate. Chattel houses are usually rectangular, often of two rooms, and are covered by a steep roof that is the building's main defence against tropical rain and wind.

Origins

The type dates from the plantation era. After emancipation, the Located Labourers Act of 1840 allowed formerly enslaved people to build on marginal plantation land for low rent, but landowners could evict tenants at short notice. Houses therefore had to be movable. They were built entirely of timber and set on loose coral-stone blocks or a ground sill rather than fixed foundations, so they could be dismantled and carried to a new site, historically by ox cart and later by truck.

Roof

The roof is steep so that it deflects wind and sheds heavy rain quickly. Roof styles evolved over time from hipped roofs and steep double-pitched gables toward flatter roofs with minimal slope. Corrugated iron became a common roof covering. As families prospered, houses were often extended by adding a second unit behind the first, each with its own roof, producing the characteristic sequence of parallel roofs seen in Barbadian villages.

Weather

Shutters were reinforced and layouts chosen to reduce wind damage. Barbados lies at the southern edge of the main Atlantic hurricane track and is struck less often than islands further north, but tropical storms and strong trade winds still shape building practice. The light frame was also designed to survive being moved with little damage.

Related Caribbean houses

Small timber houses with steep hip or gable roofs, raised on blocks or posts, are found throughout the Eastern Caribbean. In hurricane-prone islands, hip roofs are widely recommended because their four sloping sides perform better in high winds than tall gable ends.

Heritage

Chattel houses are now celebrated as part of Barbadian identity, and restored examples are used as shops and homes. Their numbers have declined as concrete-block houses have become the norm.