Quonset huts
Lightweight prefabricated structures made of galvanized iron and semicircular arched ribs are called quonset huts. The quonset hut design is based on the Nissen hut that was developed by the Navy. The name of quonset huts comes from the name of the city where they were first manufactured, Quonset Point. Quonset huts do not require skilled labor to be put together and can be shipped anywhere in the world. They were commonly used by the military for barracks, latrines, and offices, but were later sold to the public and used primarily as commerical buildings.
The Nissen hut was developed by the Navy. The Nissen hut was changed to use corrugated iron and arched ribs to become the quonset hut. The two ends were covered with plywood which had doors and windows.Another improvement on the quonset huts was the addition of interior pressed wood lining, insulation, and a one inch tongue in groove plywood floor on a raised metal framework.
The original Quonset hut was sixteen feet by thirty six feet and could be put up in one day with a team of eight men. Quonset huts were modifed to a standard size of twenty feet by forty eight feet with a ten foot radius that created seven hundred twenty square feet of usable floor space. Optional four foot overhands were sometimes added at each end of the quonset hut to protect the entrances from the rain. Other sizes included a forty feet by one hundred feet warehouse model of the quonset hut. The inside of a quonset hut is open and flexible.
Ouonset huts were not made after 1959. However, the portability and adaptability of quonset huts have kept them in use. Many quonset huts served as homes and businesses after production stopped. When the numbers of college students rose dramatically because of the GI bill, many universities and colleges erected quonset huts on their campuses. They are not used often today, but they are still around.