Thatching

Thatched rooves have provided people with shelter for thousands of years. They can be made from various plants, such as grass, heather, straw or reed.

In Pembrokeshire, long-straw thatching was the most popular as it was cheap and easily obtained. The straw was prepared in a process called drawing. This involved forking the loose straw into layers. A bucket of water was poured over each layer to make them less brittle and easier to work with. The straw was then placed into bundles and put onto a forked stick called a yoke and tied. The yoke was then carried up the ladder to the roof of the house or the top of the stack that was being thatched.

The thatcher would begin the roof by laying the wet straw evenly in four inch layers on the eaves. The layers were fastened in place by laying a stick along it and then fixing this stick in place by hammering in broaches with a mallet. Another layer of straw would be laid over the first, slightly higher up but well covering the sways and broaches. This process would continued until the ridge of the roof was met. Then bundles of straw would be laid horizontally along it to form a roll and the upstanding straw on one side bent down over it, then the upstanding straw on the other, and on each side of the ridge there would be more sways and broaches to hold these ends down.

Thatched houses are now very rare in Wales, especially in Pembrokeshire. This is mainly due to the cheapness and availability of slates and other alternative roofing materials.