What is this building?

[1918ColonialRevival]

I'm thinking it may be a former chicken coup

That's my thinking as well. Back in the day, many people used to have three or four hens around to serve as egg-layers. Even in my neighborhood, which was built as an early suburban development, people kept hens up until the late 1920s or so.

On a related note, there's a rather humorous story about the youngest son of the original owners of my house. Seems that around 1919, at age 7, he became attached to one of the egg-laying hens his family kept. He apparently made it a point to visit it every evening after school. Well, one day after she was getting past her prime with egg-laying, he came home and couldn't find her. He came up to the house and noticed their maid was preparing fried chicken for dinner that evening. His young mind made the connection and he had a meltdown. The kid in question passed away in 1979 and the story was relayed by his daughter, who was around 80 when she told us.

[Texas_Ranger]

The lattice windows would have let a little light and maybe a breeze into the shed. Maybe the panels were leftovers from a porch remodel or something?

[Olson185]

My immediate thought was chicken coop, too. The concrete pad would offer protection from predators. Ruling that out, though, is the lack of an indication of where a former chicken-run egress would be. Inside one would have to find tells of the nesting boxes shelving.

[Manalto]

It makes sense to me too, especially because of the ventilation but just a couple of days ago I spoke with the director of the historic commission, who has some of the original documents from when the house was built. She told me the building was originally a coal shed. That isn't to say it wasn't converted to a coop at some point.

[phil]

maybe that was to hide the garbage cans? or a place to park the vintage motorcycle?

[Manalto]

I suspect it has served a few purposes in its long life.

[1918ColonialRevival]

It makes sense to me too, especially because of the ventilation but just a couple of days ago I spoke with the director of the historic commission, who has some of the original documents from when the house was built. She told me the building was originally a coal shed. That isn't to say it wasn't converted to a coop at some point.

I was wondering - does your house have a basement? Your house is around the same age as mine. In the Mid-Atlantic, most houses with basements had coal chutes by the early 20th Century, but it could be a geographical difference.

One easy way to tell if it was used for coal would be to look in the crevices near the floor and see if there is any coal dust or small remaining fragments of coal, which get everywhere in a coal storage area. My house was converted to oil heat in 1929, but I still found bits of coal down in cracks in the area of the basement where the coal bin was.

[Manalto]

It is a geographical and climate difference. There's so much water around here (average annual precipitation is 64") that you strike it just by planting a petunia. My house doesn't have a cellar or basement; it's unusual in this region. I asked the real estate agent about this and she said, without fail, any house with a basement she had encountered in Mobile suffered from water problems.

Where I come from in southern New England, the lack of a cellar or basement is considered sub-standard construction but we have real winters, as do you in the Mid-Atlantic. Gulf-Coast winters are chilly but brief and don't need the insulation. (I asked the carpenter making my screen doors if they should be designed so the screens could be exchanged for glass and he told me that I'd probably wind up not using them.) I'm familiar with coal chutes and cellar bins; in fact, I know a few people who have them still in place. I should do some more investigating to learn how houses in this area (i.e., without cellars) accommodated coal delivery and storage.

[Lily left the valley]

I'm familiar with coal chutes and cellar bins; in fact, I know a few people who have them still in place. I should do some more investigating to learn how houses in this area (i.e., without cellars) accommodated coal delivery and storage.

I'd be surprised if it was anything more complex than having an outbuilding--a coal shed, like some had/ve a wood shed.