Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
Monday trivia
Gary Smyth
I heard two new terms this week.
What is the upright (gate) post on a wooden field gate, nearest the pillar, on which the hinges are attached, named? What is the front post to which the latch is attached called. Do not reply with the term stile as there are several more specific names available. Both terms are British and used throughout the twentieth century. The one I�m searching for has four letters.
Hint: Both names start with "H"
Re: Monday trivia answer *LINK*
Gary Smyth
No takers today. This admittedly was hard to find. It took quite a while to find a second source for the answer..
Hingge side post = harr, hair, heel
Lathc post = head
Oxford Journals
12 8 XI November 11, 1922
Notes and Queries
Hedge Bot: Gate Bot�
�(1) Can any reader explain the meaning of the expression�..�
�(2)�Hair post� is in use in Co. Durham and �harr post� in Somerset, for that upright part of the gate to which the hinges are attached. I have heard this part of the gate also called the �heel post� and the front upright portion to which the latch is attached the �head� or �hitch post�. Elworthy in his West Somerset Wordbook gives �haunch� as that side or end of a gate which is hinged or hung.�
Also. Roy Underhill is building a field gate on the local PBS station (Pittsburgh). In part two of the series, he names the hinge side upright the harr post.
Building Doors and Gates, Alan and Gill Bridgewater, Stackpole Books, Page 146 under �Hanging a gate� shows a diagram of a gate with the parts identified. The upright to which the hinges are attached is identified as the harr post. I was not able to copy that diagram.
http://books.google.com/books?id=L-kSrzONgugC&lpg=PA145&ots=SolwDrwjlR&dq=Harr%20post%20of%20a%20field%20gate&pg=PA145#v=onepage&q=Harr%20post%20of%20a%20field%20gate&f=false