Log homes can be found across the United States as well as in most countries of the world. The wide spread acceptance of this type of construction has its roots in two different things. One reason there are so many is because logs are a natural building material. When the colonists for example came to Plymouth Rock there were trees everywhere. This easily turns into log homes. So the availability of building materials is one reason people chose them for construction. Today the main reason for choosing log homes is that they are lovely. With the trend towards Green building materials log homes are even more popular than they were several years ago. So let’s look at building  log homes in Pennsylvania.

Over the past years Pennsylvania has proven to be one of the states with the highest demand for both handcrafted log homes and milled log homes. As people travel west from the Philadelphia area and east from Pittsburgh and south from New York City some of the log cabins which are built are for weekends and holidays. These typically are smaller homes. People who want to escape the city for a short time while still capitalizing on the lower land costs choose to purchase land in some of the less expensive rural counties. Log homes near Pittsburgh tend to be larger, year round homes.

For example a few years ago in Indiana County a 100 acres of land was being purchased for between $1000 and $2000 per acre. That is very inexpensive compared to the $5,000 to $10,000 per acre that we see here in parts of Montana. Indiana County is only a few hours drive from Pittsburgh and it also hosts an Amish Community in Smicksburg and surrounding small towns. So cost savings on land while only being a few hours from the major cities has played a definite role in making the log homes popular in this area.

Larger log homes are also in demand for Pennsylvania. With lower land costs in areas away from the cities, retirement age homeowners often choose to retire away from the city. Have you ever driven through the mountains of PA in the middle of the fall? The leaves are absolutely lovely. From one lookout along route 30 headed between the Maryland border and the bottom edge of PA you can look out over the valley and see the edge of something like three states and six counties. Years ago there was a hobby shop combination coffee shop that was open for tourists. It was a replica of a boat with the name “Noah’s Ark” painted proudly across the side of it. From the deck of that boat you could see several handcrafted log homes tucked in among the trees.

In Pennsylvania you find a balance of both styles of log homes for sale in PA. The handcrafted log homes are probably closer to the 30% mark instead of the 50% + in popularity that we see here in Montana. For the handcrafts people have to choose a supplier from the West to get log species such as Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar. White Cedar is available in the eastern US and Canada but it is not capable of the long log lengths that the red cedar offers.

Western Red Cedar only grows in the Pacific North West of the US and Canada. There are some Red Cedar forests in Northern California, Oregon, and Washington State. We also receive cedar logs from Alaska and Canada at times. Douglas Fir is another very popular log species for handcrafted log homes and milled log homes. And again it can only be found in the Rocky Mountain areas of the US and Canada.

When people choose a handcrafted log home they want something that is more unique, has more character, and they tend to not be as cost driven. If someone wants just a ‘log home’ they tend to focus on the least expensive avenue that will still get them a log home. This ends up in the form of a 6×8 or 8×8 milled log made from Pine. There is nothing wrong with milled logs or Lodge Pole Pine, but people who want more do strongly gravitate towards richer colored wood such as the Red Cedar and the handcrafted log home style.

For those building in the Adirondack mountains, smaller cabins are popular. Adirondack log homes done in the handcrafted style fit right into the mountain back drop. Cooks Forest area is also flooded with log cabins, log homes, and log lodges.

Milled log homes such as our Creekside log cabin plan to the right are very abundant in Pennsylvania. The round logs, stoned foundations, and lovely fireplaces help people feel even further away from reality.

Pennsylvania is a lovely state and it does offer out of the way areas that are not far from larger cities. So in this way the state has crept into many people’s favor and become very popular for homeowners to build their own Pennsylvania log homes.

Cowboy Log Homes