Provo Roofing Contractors Track the Evolution of Roofing
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Have you ever stopped to think why some roofing is steeply pitched and other styles of roofs are low sloping or even flat? After all, why would you think about roofing, unless your roof sprung a leak, or you were thinking about buying a home in Provo UT and wondered if the roof was in decent condition? At Timberline Roofing, we’re fascinated with roof styles and roofing products old and new!
The story of Provo roofing actually begins thousands of years ago! For a long, long time, people lived like animals, in a way. Early man could only find shelter in caves, often having to drive out wild beasts, such as mountain lions or bears. Some families simply tolerated cohabitating with rodents, bats, and birds. Eventually, one single invention allowed them to set up a homestead wherever they so pleased. That invention was THE ROOF!
The Roofing Contractors Provo Utah that Really Knows Roofs, from Lean-Tos to Gabled Roofs
Did you know that the first “roofs” invented by Mankind were simple lean-tos? A bunch of branches, twigs, and thatch or animal skins angled against an upright object such as a tree trunk, a lean-to creates shelter from nature by using a “roof slope.” When this became a skill, people could travel and migrate to new fertile lands and hunting grounds, never again wondering how to keep warm and dry. They all became roofers!
Fast-forward to Provo roofing contractors in the 19th century to the present day… The many styles of roof structures that companies like Timberline build, add to the interesting architecture of north-central Utah. Here, near the shore of Utah Lake, weather can be punishing and a good roof with efficient water-shedding capability is essential. Strong roofs that can withstand the weight of snow and ice, while moving it off the roof in a timely manner, are also critically important to maintaining the comfort, safety, and energy-efficiency of a home or building.
Gable Roofs
Back in the early 1800’s, America was swept up with an architectural style known as Greek Revival. This style was to last for decades and many surviving homes today are proof of the fine craftsmanship and roofing skills of the era. Greek Revival used gabled roofs and thick pillars to reflect wealth and pride in achieving success during the country’s Westward expansion, which played such a big part in Utah history.
Gothic Style
Whenever you see fancy wood filigree set between the rake edges of a roof you can guess you’re looking at gothic architecture here in Provo, UT. People back in the 1800s called the style Carpenter Gothic, crediting the beauty and intricacy of these decoratively trimmed roofs to the skilled craftsmen who carved them.
Dutch Colonial & Dutch Revival
The German culture that came to Utah during the mid-1800s contributed to the Mormon history of the Salt Lake Valley and other parts of Utah. Dutch Colonial style houses were characterized by somewhat flatter, double-pitched roofs– that changed angles and featured narrow dormer windows. Dutch Revival homes in Provo UT can be identified by their steeply pitched roof, flared eaves, bay windows, and wood shingle siding.
Queen Anne-style
As the 1900’s approached, Queen Anne-style architecture began popping up around Provo. Queen Anne-style is fairly ornate and has a variety of distinctive roof parts – gables, dormers, and turrets or towers. It’s the kind of architecture that gets a home placed on the Historic Register!
Tudor Style
Everyone is familiar with Tudor style homes, including roofing contractors Provo Utah. Tudor style’s popularity in Utah emerged at the turn of the 20th Century. With their timbered facades the high pitched roofs of Tudor homes commonly have side gables and dormer windows.
Craftsman Bungalow
In the 1900s, it seemed Sears controlled the material world, like Amazon.com does today! In fact, Sears even spold home designs and delivered the materials to build them. Sears and Aladdin were two companies that marketed prefab housing kits during America’s Arts & Crafts Movement. The American Craftsman home or Craftsman Bungalow was a quaint, affordable way to acquire all the building products and plans needed to erect a beautiful little home on a plot of land. Craftsman style houses can be found in abundance throughout Utah. Roof configurations on Craftsman homes include front-gabled, cross-gabled, side-gabled, and hipped roofs.
Colonial Style
The Roaring Twenties saw the rise of Colonial style homes with high-peaked roofs and dormer windows. Building materials were becoming better engineered and interstate transportation made most things available everywhere there was demand. Even Provo roofing contractors could get what they needed despite Provo’s still “far-flung” status as a U.S. state.
Frank Lloyd Wright Makes His Mark
Less than an hour’s drive north from Provo, in Bountiful UT, is the Don M. Stromquist House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The house has an endless view of the Great Salt Lake and Antelope Island. Frank Lloyd Wright’s unique style is known as Usonian. The roofs of such modern homes and buildings sported flat roofs and large cantilevered overhangs.
Raising the Roof in the 1990s!
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir (founded 1847) wasn’t the only sound raising the roof in the 1990s. Construction on house after ranch-style house turned one-story dwellings into multi-story fun houses for families consisting of upwardly mobile dual-earners, soccer moms, and star ballers deserving of chauffeured rides to practice fields and games day after day, week after week. These two- and 3-story conversions required lots of skill by Provo roofing contractors which “popped the tops” off Provo roofing and raised them on high, like the voices of America’s most famous choir!
Ushering in 2020s
For new builds in the Provo area,architects and homeowners want to express themselves, and roof materials and colors are part of that self expression. Asphalt shingle, metal roofing, ceramic tile, solar shingles, slate and shake roofing…the choices run the gamut. Timberline Roofing can help you realize the roof you want at a cost you can manage. Welcome to the 2020s, when whatever you wish for and can afford can be yours when you partner with Timberline Roofing!
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Knowinh History and Knowing Your Provo Roofing Contractors
Among the roofing contractors in north-central UT, no company quite measures up to Timberline Roofing. The team at Timberline has worked hard to earn the trust of Provo UT residents and business owners by delivering great value through a combination of superior workmanship, high-quality products, and fair, accurate pricing. Contact us at (385) 332-3836, info@timberlineroofingutah.com
