"Tan Bark"

When one reads Henry French's book on Farm Drainage he mentions his "cellar drainage" was two rows of 2" clay tiles surrounded by "tan bark". What is this tan bark? Well in doing research on this subject I found that tan bark was probably the inner bark of the red oak tree. During the 1850's "tannin" was very desirable as it was used in leather tanning. I believe the tan bark was probably the bark that was left after the tannin was extracted.

At first I asked my self, "why would Henry French use tan bark around his cellar drains instead of river stone. Was it because of it being readily available? Easy to install? Well I must say that when doing research on iron bacteria and its affects on drainage systems, I came across two separate research studies, one in Scotland and the other in Florida. In each of these studies they found that the acid in conifer bark or in the case in Florida (oak bark) actually aided in controlling iron bacteria clogging drainage fields.

Could it be that in the 1850's Henry French knew that the tan bark would actually keep the cellar drains in his farm house in Concord, Massachusetts running freely.. (Note: I have been in this cellar of this house recently and did see that there was iron bacteria present.) Knowing what I do about Henry French and the Concord Farmers Group, I believe they did know. Some times when we want to learn something to help us with a problem, it is always a good idea to look at the things our ancestors did in the past and then ask why.

French Drain - Where did it originate?

The French Drain is one of the most frequently searched terms when it comes to drainage. However most of the information I see posted on the internet by contractors and homeowners is not accurate. Here is what some people are saying:

1) The french drain was developed in France because the homes there did not have roof drainage (gutters) so an open trench of perforated pipe and crushed stone would direct the roof water away from the foundation.

2) The french drain is an outside trench directing water away from the foundation.

The truth of the matter is that it was named after Henry F French, a judge from Cambridge, Massachusetts who wrote a book in 1859 called Farm Drainage. In that book he wrote a chapter called Cellar Drainage. In fact, in the book it shows how he recommended installing interior clay tile drains (2" clay tile laid side by side in a trench around the perimeter of the cellar surrounded by tan bark. (see tan bark post)