Star on Houses

You may not have noticed them, but many older homes have a good-sized star on the outside of the house either in the front or on the sides. The star could have 5 points or 6 points and be painted in different colors depending on the color of any shutters or trim work.

The early stars were made of brick or metal for brick homes. Such homes needed long metal bolts to run through the house and then be secured at the ends to keep the older building from swaying or maybe later crumbling. The bolts ran usually front to back. A star was then placed to secure the metal bolt from both ends. The stars looked nice instead of a plain large nut.

Another design you might see on any older home was the scroll patterns or a large ‘S’. They attached to the large bolt also and had also a decorative feature. So seeing such designs means that older homes needed to be made secure and steady.

Photo: Star and bolt on a brick home.

Related FamilyTree.com Blogs:

Victorian Homes

Family Outhouses

White Homes and Buildings