The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy

One of the little understood dimensions of American culture has been the material contribution of Afro-Americans. The material achievements of Blacks are generally assumed to have been negligible, if not non-existent. Yet, now and again, diligent scholarship brings to light an Afro-American tradition in basketry, ironwork, pottery, and other crafts. The continued study of things Negro will presumably heighten awareness both of black creativity and the existence of an Afro-American material culture. Some African artifacts survived the period of slavery because of their similarity to items employed by Whites. The mortar and pestle, two African tools, were used for winnowing rice among the Gullah Negroes of the Sea Islands largely because the same implements were also found in the dominant White Culture.2 While the black artifactual repertoire has never dominated the material culture of the United States, it has in some cases provided a central influence in the creation of significant items. Notably, the dug out canoes of the Chesapeake region and the banjo are thought to have benefited from Afro-American influence.3 There has been a constant interaction of black and white material repertoires leading not only to the sharing of items, but to the borrowing of them as well. It is here argued that in the development of the shotgun house we find an Afro-American artifact that has been adopted by Whites and effectively incorporated into popular building practices. The significance of this postulated cultural borrowing cannot be overlooked for it represents an important contribution of Afro-Americans to the cultural landscape. 

Vlach, John Michael. “The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy. Part I.” Pioneer America 8, no. 1 (1976): 47–56. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20831831.