thumb|300px|Quonset huts at [[Point Mugu, California|Point Mugu, California, in 1946 with Laguna Peak in the background.]]

A Quonset hut is a lightweight prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized steel with a semi-circular cross-section. The design was developed in the United States based on the Nissen hut introduced by the British during World War I. 170,000 Quonset huts were manufactured during World War II, and the military sold its surplus huts to the public after the war.

Design and history

The first Quonset huts were manufactured in 1941 when the United States Navy needed a lightweight, all-purpose building that could be shipped anywhere and assembled without skilled labor. They could be assembled in a day by a 10-person team using only hand tools.

The George A. Fuller construction company manufactured them, and the first was produced within 60 days of signing the contract. In 1946, the Great Lakes Steel Corporation claimed "the term 'Quonset,' as applied to builders and building materials, is a trade mark owned by the Great Lakes Steel Corporation." But the word is often used generically. Today similar structures are made by many contractors in countries around the world.

The original design was a structure framed with steel members with an radius. The most common design created a standard size of with a base dimension, allowing of usable floor space with optional overhangs at each end for protection of entrances from the weather. Other sizes were developed, including and warehouse models.

The sides were corrugated steel sheets, and the two ends were covered with plywood which had doors and windows. The interior was insulated and had pressed-wood lining and a wood floor. The building could be placed on concrete, on pilings, or directly on the ground with a wood floor. The original design used low-grade steel, which was later replaced by a more rust-resistant version. The flexible interior space was open, allowing use as barracks, latrines, medical and dental offices, isolation wards, housing, and bakeries.

170,000 Quonset huts are estimated to have been manufactured during World War II. Some are still in active use at United States military bases. The U.S. Department of Energy continues to use Quonset huts as supporting structures (fabrication and machine shops, warehouses, etc.) at the Nevada National Security Site. The repurposed huts were common enough that Sherwin-Williams introduced a line of paint called "Quon-Kote" specifically designed to stick to the metal structures.

<Gallery widths=200 heights=170>

File:American troops marching to quarters in Ireland 1942-02.jpg|American troops in Northern Ireland, 1942

File:Quonset hut emplacement in Japan.jpg|A Quonset hut being put in place at the 598th Engineer Base Depot in Japan, post–World War II

File:Nankin Value Battery Quonset hut Westland Michigan.JPG|Quonset hut adapted for commercial use in Westland, Michigan

File:QuonsetHutInterior.1950s.jpg|The original St. Barnabas church in Paradise Valley, Arizona

File:A Quonset Hut in Dade City, Florida.jpg|A Quonset hut in Dade City, Florida

File:American-legion-post-livingston-tn1.jpg|American Legion Hut, Livingston, Tennessee

File:Fred's Tavern, Dodge City, Kansas LCCN2017709459.tif|Fred's Tavern, Dodge City, Kansas

</Gallery>

See also

  • Daniel House (Knoxville, Tennessee)
  • Dymaxion deployment unit
  • Iris hut and Romney hut, similar British prefabricated structures used in WWII
  • Jamesway hut
  • Longhouses of the indigenous peoples of North America
  • Nissen hut
  • Patera Building
  • Abbey of Our Lady of the Holy Trinity, a former Trappist monastery in Utah housed in Quonset huts.

References

  • Feature article on the design and origin of the Quonset Hut from the Varnum Continentals historical organization in East Greenwich, RI.
  • Quonset Hut History in Washington State from 1941 - 1960 from the Washington State Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation.
  • Quonset Huts at Guampedia, Guam's Online Encyclopedia
  • Quonset Huts, At National Airport, Arlington, Arlington County, VA at the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS)
  • Quonset and Pacific Huts at the Kodiak Military History Museum
  • Pacific Huts at the online encyclopedia of Washington State History
  • Quonset Hut (search Pacific Hut Company) at the Seabee Museum and Memorial Park