balloon frame

noun

a wooden building frame composed of machine-sawed scantlings fastened with nails, having studs rising the full height of the frame with the joists nailed to the studs and supported by sills or by ribbons let into the studs.

Origin of balloon frame

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

The balloon-frame house is a typical form of framed construction, Fig. 300.
Handwork in Wood | William Noyes
If a mechanic is employed, the balloon frame can be put up for forty per cent.
Woodward's Country Homes | George E. Woodward
The balloon frame (fig. 36) is composed of much smaller scantlings and is more rapidly erected and less expensive.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 | Various
They are built of wood, balloon frame, with a plain pitch roof, without ornament.
Woodward's Country Homes | George E. Woodward
The early history of the balloon frame, is somewhat obscure, there being no well authenticated statements of its origin.
Woodward's Country Homes | George E. Woodward

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