I never knew there were so many different gambrel roof lines!

What a super nice day to drive around and look at architecture.  Last week, I commuted for three days from here to Fairfield, ME for a multiple day auction session for my "real job."  I noticed with increasing interest that many of the buildings on route 137 out of Belfast are gambrel roof buildings similar Slum and Blight (see the first photo below).

From Wikipedia: Gambrel is a shortened name for a gambrel roof shape, a usually symmetrical two-sided roof with two slopes on each side. The upper slope is positioned at a shallow angle, while the lower slope is steep. This design provides the advantages of a sloped roof while maximizing headroom inside the building's upper level and shortening what would otherwise be a tall roof. The name comes from theMedieval Latin word gamba, meaning horse's hock or leg.^[1][2] The term gambrel is of American origin^[3], the older, European name being a curb (kerb, kirb) roof. Europeans historically also did not distinguish between a gambrel and a Mansard but called both types a Mansard. In the U.S.A., various shapes of gambrel roofs are sometimes called Dutch gambrel or Dutch Colonial gambrel with bell-cast eaves, Swedish ~, German ~, English ~ , French ~, or New England gambrel.

I found it fascinating that Route 137 should have so many gambrel roof lines, but route 7, which runs pretty parallel and is only a block away is almost devoid of them.  

 The Slum and Blight roofline is very flat and kind of ugly.  I was hoping for ideas to snazz the exterior up (you know, for when we have a lot of money to fix this place up!) and when we can get that bloody door out of there!!

I like this roof line cause it's so curvy, but it would probably be too much for ole Slum and Blight to handle.

 This gambrel is directly across the street from the one above it, but the roof line is completely different. The line is flatter like Slum and Blight's,  but there is that return at the bottom that frames out the roof nicely.

This is more like what the roof will look like when we replace it with a new green metal roof.  It looks to me like the installer bent the lower panels to follow the kick-out of the lower portton of the eave.

 Perhaps one of my favorite buildings in Belfast.  I just adore the lines of this barn.  I think the roof and the barn are very well proportioned.   I would love to see the Slum and Blight shed have this much good character rather than the scary character it emits now.  

We are still on the lookout for the one gambrel roof barn I saw with really good dormers.  Turns out there is enough room in the shed at Slum and Blight to put in office spaces or just rentable spaces upstairs.  When I find the building again, I will add that photo here cause I think the dormers work really well and would fit with the character of the shed and the original building and would tie them together nicely.