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A modest shotgun house in New Orleans's Bayou St. John neighborhood shortly after Hurricane Katrina. Shotgun houses consist of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways and have a narrow, rectangular structure.

The shotgun house is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than 12 feet (3.5 m) wide, with doors at each end. It was the most popular style of house in the Southern United States from the end of the American Civil War (1861–65), through to the 1920s.^{[citation needed]} Alternate names include shotgun shack, shotgun hut, and shotgun cottage. A railroad apartment is somewhat similar, but has a side hallway from which rooms are entered (by analogy to compartments in passenger rail cars).^{[citation needed]}

A longstanding theory is that the style can be traced from Africa to Haitian influences on house design in New Orleans,^[1] but the houses can be found as far away as Chicago, Illinois; Key West, Florida; and California. Shotgun houses can still be found in many small southern towns. Though initially as popular with the middle class as with the poor, the shotgun house became a symbol of poverty in the mid-20th century. Opinion is now mixed: some houses are bulldozed due to urban renewal, while others are saved due to historic preservation and/or gentrification.^{[citation needed]}

Shotgun houses consist of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways. The term "shotgun house", which was in use by 1903 but became more common after about 1940, is often said to come from the saying that one could fire a shotgun through the front door and the pellets would fly cleanly through the house and out the back door (since all the doors are on the same side of the house).^{[citation needed]} Another reputed source of the name is that many were built out of crates, e.g. old shotgun-shell crates, and those made for other purposes. However, the name's origin may actually reflect an African architectural heritage, perhaps being a corruption of a term such as to-gun, which means "place of assembly" in the Southern Dohomey Fon area.^[2]

Several variations of shotgun houses allow for additional features and space, and many have been updated to the needs of later generations of owners. The oldest shotgun houses were built without indoor plumbing, and this was often added later (sometimes crudely). "Double-barrel" shotgun houses consist of two houses sharing a central wall, allowing more houses to be fitted into an area. "Camelback" shotgun houses include a second floor at the rear of the house. In some cases, the entire floor plan is changed during remodeling to create hallways.^[3]

History

Shotgun houses were most popular before widespread ownership of the automobile allowed people to live farther from businesses and other destinations. Building lots were kept small out of necessity, 30 feet (9 m) wide at most. An influx of people to cities, both from rural areas in America and from foreign countries, all looking to fill emerging manufacturing jobs, created the high demand for housing in cities.^{[citation needed]} Shotgun houses were thus built to fulfill the same need as rowhouses in Northeastern cities. Several were usually built at a time by a single builder, contributing to their relatively similar appearance.^[3]

The New Orleans housing taxation structure contributed to the design of the shotgun in its region. The shotgun utilized a minimized lot frontage, when taxes were based on lot frontage, then when that was subverted by untaxable second floor additions of space AKA the "Camelback", the tax was shifted to number of rooms, which equalized the taxation per square footage within a property.^{[citation needed]} Consequently, neither design contains closets or hallways, which were counted as rooms.^{[citation needed]}

Folklorist and professor John Michael Vlach has suggested that the origin of the building style and the name itself may trace back to Haiti and Africa in the 1700s and earlier. The name may have originated from the Africa's Southern Dahomey Fon area term, to-gun, which means, "place of assembly." The description, probably used in New Orleans by Afro Haitian slaves, may have been misunderstood and reinterpreted as "Shotgun."^[4] Another, frequently repeated theory suggests that the term "shotgun" is a reference to the idea that if you open all the doors to the house, the pellets fired from a shotgun would fly cleanly from one end to the other (though the origin of this description is unknown). Also a common understanding of the name is that they were built of discarded crates, i.e. shotgun-shell and other crates.^{[citation needed]}

The theory behind the earlier African origin is tied to the history of New Orleans. In 1803 there were 1,355 free blacks in the city. By 1810 blacks outnumbered whites 10,500 to 4,500. This caused a housing boom. As many of both the builders and inhabitants were Africans by way of Haiti, historians believe it is only natural they modeled the new homes after ones they left behind in their homeland. Many surviving Haitian dwellings of the period, including about 15 percent of the housing stock of Port-au-Prince, resemble the single shotgun houses of New Orleans.^[4] A simpler theory is that is that they are the typical one-room-deep floor plan popular in the rural south, rotated to accommodate narrow city lots.^[1]

The shotgun house was popularized in New Orleans.^{[citation needed]} The style was definitely built there by 1832, though there is evidence that houses sold in the 1830s were built 15 to 20 years earlier.^[4] The houses were built throughout hot urban areas in the South, since the style's length allowed for excellent airflow, while its narrow frontage increased the number of lots that could be fitted along a street.^{[citation needed]} It was used so frequently that some southern cities estimate that, even today, 10% or more of their housing stock is composed of shotgun houses.^[5]

The earliest known use of "shotgun house" as a name for these dwellings is in a classified advertisement in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, August 30, 1903: "Two 3-room houses near the railroad yards at Simpson st. crossing, rent $12 a month to good tenants who pay in advance; price $1,200 on terms or $100 cash, balance $15 a month; a combination of investment and savings bank: these are not shacks, but good shot-gun houses in good repair."^{[citation needed]} While this advertisement seems to present shotgun houses as a desirable working-class housing alternative, by 1929 a Tennessee court noted that shotgun houses could not be rented to any other than a very poor class of tenants.^[6] After the Great Depression, few shotgun houses were built, and existing ones went into decline. By the late 20th century, shotgun houses in some areas were being restored as housing and for other uses.^[3]

Shotgun houses were often initially built as rental properties, located near manufacturing centers or railroad hubs, to provide housing choices for workers. Owners of factories frequently built the houses to rent specifically to employees, usually for a few dollars a month.^[3] By the late 20th century, however, shotguns were often owner-occupied. For example, 85% of the houses (many of them shotgun) in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward were owner-occupied.^[7]

Characteristics

The rooms of a shotgun house are lined up one behind the other, typically a living room is first, then one or two bedrooms, and finally a kitchen in back. Early shotgun houses were not built with bathrooms, but in later years a bathroom with a small hall was built before the last room of the house, or a side addition was built off the kitchen.^[3] Some shotguns may have as few as two rooms.^[8]

Chimneys tended to be built in the interior, allowing the front and middle rooms to share a chimney with a fireplace opening in each room. The kitchen usually has its own chimney.^{[citation needed]}

Other than the basic floor layout, shotgun houses have many standard features in common. The house is almost always close to the street, sometimes with a very short front yard. In some cases, the house has no front yard and is actually flush with the sidewalk. The original steps were wood, but were often replaced with permanent concrete steps.^{[citation needed]}

A sign of its New Orleans heritage, the house is usually raised two to three feet off the ground. There is a single door and window in the front of the house, and often a side door leading into the back room, which is slightly wider than the rest of the house. The front door and window often were originally covered by decorative shutters. Side walls may or may not have windows; rooms not adjoining the front nor back door will generally have at least one window even when the houses are built very close together.^{[citation needed]}

Typically, shotgun houses have a wood frame structure and wood siding, although some examples exist in brick and even stone. Many shotguns, especially older or less expensive ones, have flat roofs that end at the front wall of the house. In houses built after 1880, the roof usually overhangs the front wall, and there is usually a gable above the overhang. The overhang is usually supported by decorative wooden brackets, and sometimes contains cast iron ventilators.^[9]

The rooms are well-sized, and have relatively high ceilings for cooling purposes, as when warm air can rise higher, the lower part of a room tends to be cooler. The lack of hallways allows for efficient cross-ventilation in every room. Rooms usually have some decoration such as moldings, ceiling medallions, and elaborate woodwork. In cities like New Orleans, local industries supplied elaborate but mass-produced brackets and other ornaments for shotgun houses that were accessible even to homeowners of modest means.^[7]

Variations

A double shotgun structure in the Uptown neighborhood of New Orleans. Double shotgun houses were a form of multiple-family housing, where essentially two conventional shotgun houses shared a central wall.

A classic camelback shotgun house in Uptown New Orleans

A conventional one-story freestanding shotgun house is often called a single shotgun. Many common variations exist in high quantity, and are often actually more common than the single shotgun in cities.^{[citation needed]}

A double shotgun, also called double-barrel shotgun, is essentially two shotgun houses connected to each other and sharing a central wall. They are a form of Semi-detached housing.^{[citation needed]} The double shotgun requires less land per household than the traditional shotgun and was used extensively in poorer areas because it could be built with fewer materials and use less land per occupant. It was first seen in New Orleans in 1854.^[4]

A camelback house, also called humpback, is a variation of the shotgun that has a partial second floor over the rear of the house. Camelback houses were built in the later period of shotgun houses. The floor plan and construction is very similar to the traditional shotgun house, except there are stairs in the back room leading up the second floor. The second floor, or "hump", contains one to four rooms. Because it was only a partial second story, most cities only taxed it as a single-story house - in fact this was a key reason for their construction.^[10]

The double width shotgun is where an extra large and wide shotgun house would be built on two lots instead of one. These were typically built one to a block in locations where a single person would first buy the entire city block during development, then build themselves a double sized home and then subdivide the rest of the block with single lot homes.^{[citation needed]}

"North shore" houses are shotgun houses with wide verandas on three sides. They were so named because most were built on the north shore of New Orleans' Lake Pontchartrain as summer homes for wealthy whites.^[4]

The term may also refer to a different structure, common in rural areas and small towns, which takes the form of a small, long, free-standing house, generally made of wood, with no hallways.^{[citation needed]} Unlike the larger terraced version, this is generally a single-storied dwelling, but it was still associated with poverty and popular partially because of its ability to make hot weather more comfortable.^{[citation needed]} It was most prevalent along waterways and bayous in rural Louisiana.^[11] A combination, the Double Camelback shotgun, also exists. A minor variation is a side door allowing access to the kitchen, or a porch along the side extending almost the length of the house.^[3]

Decline and legacy

The construction of shotgun houses slowed and eventually stopped during the early 20th century. The affordability of two technological innovations, the car and consumer air conditioning units, made the key advantages of the shotgun house obsolete to home buyers.^{[citation needed]} After World War II, shotgun houses had very little appeal to those building or buying new houses, as car-oriented modern suburbs were built en masse.^{[citation needed]} Few shotgun houses have been built in America since the war, although the concept of a simple, single-level floor plan lived on in ranch-style houses.^[3]

The surviving urban shotgun houses suffered problems related to those typically facing the inner city neighborhoods in which they were located. The flight of affluent residents to the suburbs, absentee owners, and a shortage of mortgage lenders for inner city residents led to the deterioration of shotgun houses in the mid and late 20th century. Confusing ownership, passed down within a family over several generations, also contributed to many houses sitting vacant for years.^[3]

Though shotguns are sometimes perceived as being housing prevalent in poor African American neighborhoods, many were originally built heavily in segregated white neighborhoods.^{[citation needed]} Many of these neighborhoods became predominantly black during the 1950s and 1960s, but many others did not and remain predominantly white.^[7]

A single shotgun in New Orlean's Faubourg Marigny neighborhood

Regardless of who was living in them, from World War II until the 1980s, shotguns came to be widely viewed as substandard housing and a symbol of poverty, and they were demolished by many urban renewal projects. This thinking is no longer so prevalent, with cities such as Houston and Charlotte establishing "Shotgun Historic Districts". Shotgun houses have even been praised as quality and cost-effective cultural assets that promote a distinctive urban life.^[7] Other cities, such as Macon, Georgia, experimented with renovating shotgun houses for low-income residents and, though split on whether it is cheaper to tear them down and build new housing,^[12] some were rebuilt.^[13]

There are many large neighborhoods in older American cities of the south which still contain a high concentration of shotgun houses today. Examples include Bywater in New Orleans; Portland, Butchertown, and Germantown in Louisville; and Cabbagetown in Atlanta.^{[citation needed]} Their role in the history of the south has become recognized; for example, in October 2001, Rice University sponsored an exhibition called "Shotguns 2001".^{[citation needed]} This three-day event featured lectures on and artistic paintings of the houses, as well as presentations and panel discussions in a neighborhood of restored shotguns.

In some shotgun-dominated neighborhoods, property value has become quite high, leading to gentrification. Sometimes, a new owner will buy both homes of a double-barreled shotgun structure, and combine them to form a relatively large single house. Shotguns are also often combined to renovate them into office or storage space.^[14]

A limited revival

Elements of the shotgun style have recently been seen in a number of the compact, low occupancy structures employed in the Solar Decathlon contests held in Washington, DC, periodically. While some are erected from panels brought to the site, many such structures consist of enclosed single or multiple units designed specifically for road transports, with multiple modules connected on site, and compact linear structures often employ multiple-use "zones" rather than specifically private areas, while retaining a linear progression of spaces.^{[citation needed]}

Southern culture / Pop culture

The shotgun house plays a role in the folklore and culture of the south. Superstition holds that ghosts and spirits are attracted to shotgun houses because they may pass straight through them, and that some houses were built with doors intentionally misaligned to deter these spirits.^[10] They also often serve as a convenient symbol of life in the south. Elvis Presley was born in a shotgun house,^[15]^[16] the Neville Brothers grew up in one,^{[failed verification]}^[17] and Robert Johnson is said to have died in one.^{[failed verification]}^[18] Shortly before his death in May 1997, Jeff Buckley rented a shotgun house in Memphis and was so enamoured with it he contacted the owner about the possibility of buying it. Dream Brother, David Browne's biography on Jeff and Tim Buckley, opens with a description of this shotgun house and Jeff's fondness of it.^[19]

One of the more widely known references to a shotgun house was in the 1980 Talking Heads song "Once In A Lifetime". The first line of the song is "And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack".^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b McAlester, Virginia & Lee (1997). A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Knopf. p. 90. ISBN 0394739698.
^ Vlach, John (1976). "The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy". Pioneer America. 8: 47–56.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h The Shotgun house: urban housing opportunities. Preservation Alliance of Louisville and Jefferson Co. 1980.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Vlach, J: "Shotgun houses", pages 51–57. Natural History 86, 1977).
^ Burns, Richard Allen. The Shotgun Houses of Trumann, Arkansas, Arkansas Review, (April 2002), Vol. 33, Issue 1
^ Moore v. Minnis, 11 Tenn.App. 88 (Tenn. App. 1929).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Starr, S. Frederick. The New Orleans Shotgun: Down but Not Out. New York Times. September 22, 2005. pg. F.7.
^ Marling, Karal Ann (1996). Graceland. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674358898.
^ Shotgun Houses on Architectural Patrimony. bywater.org; Bywater Neighborhood Association. New Orleans, LA. Accessed April 4, 2006.
^ ^a ^b Holl, Steven (November 1, 1995). "Pamphlet Architecture 9: Rural and Urban House Types". Princeton Architectural Press: 34–39. Retrieved 2010-07-01. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |isdn= ignored (help)
^ Kniffen, Fred B. (1936). "Louisiana House Types". Annals of the Association of American Geographers. 26 (4). Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 26, No. 4: 179–193. doi:10.2307/2569532.
^ Duncan, S. Heather (6 March 2006). "Shotgun houses, rehabilitate or replace?" (Paywall). The Macon Telegraph. p. 8. Some city planners and even residents themselves debate the value of preserving shotgun houses. This is partly because their architecture is more unassuming than that of [nearby] antebellum homes[...]. [Some said] 'There are very few houses that can't be rehabbed cheaper than building new. And when you tear down and rebuild, you've got to charge more in rent.'
^ "Historic shotgun houses renovated in downtown Macon" (Paywall). Macon Telegraph. April 16, 2008. p. A1. Four renovated, century-old shotgun houses are expected to be completed by the end of the month[...]
^ Roney, Marty (July 2, 2005). "Old shotgun homes given new purpose". Montgomery Advertiser. p. 1.
^ Mason, Bobbie Ann (2007). Elvis Presley: A Life. Penguin Books. p. 11. ISBN 0143038893. Retrieved 2010-07-01.
^ Marling, Karal Ann (Autumn 1993). Elvis Presley's Graceland, or the Aesthetic of Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, American Art, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 72–105.
^ Arroyo, Raymond (2007-10-11). "The Devotion of Aaron Neville". Crisis Magazine. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2010-06-15. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |year= / |date= mismatch (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
^ Styles, Sean (2001). Trail of the Hellhound - Delta Blues in the Lower Mississippi Valley: Delta Sites, U.S. National Park Service. Retrieved April 4, 2006.
^ Browne, David. Dream Brother: The Lives and Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley. HarperEntertainment. January, 2001. pg 1

External links

Shotgun House (at Bywater Neighborhood Association) includes many example photos)
Shotgun House Project for New Orleans Discussion of appropriateness of new shotguns for rebuilding NOLA
A New Orleans shotgun converted into a two-story three-bedroom house (the Spring 2008 This Old House project)
Shotgun Homes and porches
Project Row Houses is an example of art and social activism, based on 22 shotgun houses rescued and renovated in Houston's Third Ward.

Template:Link FA

[mcalester-1] McAlester, Virginia & Lee (1997). A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Knopf. p. 90. ISBN 0394739698.

[2] Vlach, John (1976). "The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy". Pioneer America. 8: 47–56.

[pres-3] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h The Shotgun house: urban housing opportunities. Preservation Alliance of Louisville and Jefferson Co. 1980.

[nh-4] Vlach, J: "Shotgun houses", pages 51–57. Natural History 86, 1977).

[Burns-5] Burns, Richard Allen. The Shotgun Houses of Trumann, Arkansas, Arkansas Review, (April 2002), Vol. 33, Issue 1

[6] Moore v. Minnis, 11 Tenn.App. 88 (Tenn. App. 1929).

[Starr-7] Starr, S. Frederick. The New Orleans Shotgun: Down but Not Out. New York Times. September 22, 2005. pg. F.7.

[8] Marling, Karal Ann (1996). Graceland. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674358898.

[9] Shotgun Houses on Architectural Patrimony. bywater.org; Bywater Neighborhood Association. New Orleans, LA. Accessed April 4, 2006.

[holl-10] Holl, Steven (November 1, 1995). "Pamphlet Architecture 9: Rural and Urban House Types". Princeton Architectural Press: 34–39. Retrieved 2010-07-01. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |isdn= ignored (help)

[11] Kniffen, Fred B. (1936). "Louisiana House Types". Annals of the Association of American Geographers. 26 (4). Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 26, No. 4: 179–193. doi:10.2307/2569532.

[12] Duncan, S. Heather (6 March 2006). "Shotgun houses, rehabilitate or replace?" (Paywall). The Macon Telegraph. p. 8. Some city planners and even residents themselves debate the value of preserving shotgun houses. This is partly because their architecture is more unassuming than that of [nearby] antebellum homes[...]. [Some said] 'There are very few houses that can't be rehabbed cheaper than building new. And when you tear down and rebuild, you've got to charge more in rent.'

[13] "Historic shotgun houses renovated in downtown Macon" (Paywall). Macon Telegraph. April 16, 2008. p. A1. Four renovated, century-old shotgun houses are expected to be completed by the end of the month[...]

[14] Roney, Marty (July 2, 2005). "Old shotgun homes given new purpose". Montgomery Advertiser. p. 1.

[15] Mason, Bobbie Ann (2007). Elvis Presley: A Life. Penguin Books. p. 11. ISBN 0143038893. Retrieved 2010-07-01.

[16] Marling, Karal Ann (Autumn 1993). Elvis Presley's Graceland, or the Aesthetic of Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, American Art, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 72–105.

[17] Arroyo, Raymond (2007-10-11). "The Devotion of Aaron Neville". Crisis Magazine. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2010-06-15. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |year= / |date= mismatch (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)

[18] Styles, Sean (2001). Trail of the Hellhound - Delta Blues in the Lower Mississippi Valley: Delta Sites, U.S. National Park Service. Retrieved April 4, 2006.

[19] Browne, David. Dream Brother: The Lives and Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley. HarperEntertainment. January, 2001. pg 1

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@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 [[Image:BayouStJohnHeartMarkTires.jpg|thumb|A modest shotgun house in [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]]'s [[Bayou St. John]] neighborhood shortly after [[Hurricane Katrina]]. Shotgun houses consist of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways and have a narrow, rectangular structure.]]
-The '''shotgun house''' is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than 12&nbsp;feet (3.5&nbsp;m) wide, with doors at each end. It was the most popular style of house in the [[Southern United States]] from the end of the [[American Civil War]] (1861–65), through to the 1920s.  Alternate names include '''shotgun shack''', '''shotgun hut''', and '''shotgun cottage'''. A [[railroad apartment]] is somewhat similar, but has a side hallway from which rooms are entered (by analogy to compartments in passenger rail cars).
+The '''shotgun house''' is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than 12&nbsp;feet (3.5&nbsp;m) wide, with doors at each end. It was the most popular style of house in the [[Southern United States]] from the end of the [[American Civil War]] (1861–65), through to the 1920s.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}  Alternate names include '''shotgun shack''', '''shotgun hut''', and '''shotgun cottage'''. A [[railroad apartment]] is somewhat similar, but has a side hallway from which rooms are entered (by analogy to compartments in passenger rail cars).{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
-A longstanding theory is that the style can be traced from Africa to Haitian influences on house design in [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]],<ref name="mcalester"/> but the houses can be found as far away as [[Chicago, Illinois]]; [[Key West, Florida]]; and [[California]]. Shotgun houses can still be found in many small southern towns. Though initially as popular with the middle class as with the poor, the shotgun house became a symbol of poverty in the mid-20th century. Opinion is now mixed: some houses are bulldozed due to [[urban renewal]], while others are saved due to [[historic preservation]] and/or [[gentrification]].
+A longstanding theory is that the style can be traced from Africa to Haitian influences on house design in [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]],<ref name="mcalester"/> but the houses can be found as far away as [[Chicago, Illinois]]; [[Key West, Florida]]; and [[California]]. Shotgun houses can still be found in many small southern towns. Though initially as popular with the middle class as with the poor, the shotgun house became a symbol of poverty in the mid-20th century. Opinion is now mixed: some houses are bulldozed due to [[urban renewal]], while others are saved due to [[historic preservation]] and/or [[gentrification]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
-Shotgun houses consist of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways. The term "shotgun house", which was in use by 1903 but became more common after about 1940, is often said to come from the saying that one could fire a [[shotgun]] through the front door and the [[lead shot|pellet]]s would fly cleanly through the house and out the back door (since all the doors are on the same side of the house).  Another reputed source of the name is that many were built out of [[crate]]s, e.g. old shotgun-shell crates, and those made for other purposes.  However, the name's origin may actually reflect an African architectural heritage, perhaps being a corruption of a term such as ''to-gun'', which means "place of assembly" in the Southern Dohomey Fon area.<ref>{{cite journal| author=Vlach, John| journal=Pioneer America| title=The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy|year=1976|volume=8|pages=47–56}}</ref>
+Shotgun houses consist of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways. The term "shotgun house", which was in use by 1903 but became more common after about 1940, is often said to come from the saying that one could fire a [[shotgun]] through the front door and the [[lead shot|pellet]]s would fly cleanly through the house and out the back door (since all the doors are on the same side of the house).{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}  Another reputed source of the name is that many were built out of [[crate]]s, e.g. old shotgun-shell crates, and those made for other purposes.  However, the name's origin may actually reflect an African architectural heritage, perhaps being a corruption of a term such as ''to-gun'', which means "place of assembly" in the Southern Dohomey Fon area.<ref>{{cite journal| author=Vlach, John| journal=Pioneer America| title=The Shotgun House: An African Architectural Legacy|year=1976|volume=8|pages=47–56}}</ref>
 Several variations of shotgun houses allow for additional features and space, and many have been updated to the needs of later generations of owners.  The oldest shotgun houses were built without [[domestic water system|indoor plumbing]], and this was often added later (sometimes crudely). "Double-barrel" shotgun houses consist of two houses sharing a central wall, allowing more houses to be fitted into an area. "Camelback" shotgun houses include a second floor at the rear of the house. In some cases, the entire [[floor plan]] is changed during remodeling to create hallways.<ref name= "pres">{{Cite book|title=The Shotgun house: urban housing opportunities|publisher= Preservation Alliance of Louisville and Jefferson Co.|year= 1980}}</ref>
@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 ==History==
 [[Image:572146cv-cropped.jpg|thumb|left|Shotgun houses spaced tightly together in [[Louisville, Kentucky]]. In cities, shotguns were built closely together for a variety of reasons.]]
-Shotgun houses were most popular before widespread ownership of the automobile allowed people to live farther from businesses and other destinations.  Building lots were kept small out of necessity, 30&nbsp;feet (9&nbsp;m) wide at most. An influx of people to cities, both from rural areas in America and from foreign countries, all looking to fill emerging manufacturing jobs, created the high demand for housing in cities.  Shotgun houses were thus built to fulfill the same need as [[rowhouse]]s in [[Northeastern United States|Northeastern]] cities. Several were usually built at a time by a single builder, contributing to their relatively similar appearance.<ref name="pres" />
+Shotgun houses were most popular before widespread ownership of the automobile allowed people to live farther from businesses and other destinations.  Building lots were kept small out of necessity, 30&nbsp;feet (9&nbsp;m) wide at most. An influx of people to cities, both from rural areas in America and from foreign countries, all looking to fill emerging manufacturing jobs, created the high demand for housing in cities.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Shotgun houses were thus built to fulfill the same need as [[rowhouse]]s in [[Northeastern United States|Northeastern]] cities. Several were usually built at a time by a single builder, contributing to their relatively similar appearance.<ref name="pres" />
-The New Orleans housing taxation structure contributed to the design of the shotgun in its region. The shotgun utilized a minimized lot frontage, when taxes were based on lot frontage, then when that was subverted by untaxable second floor additions of space AKA the "Camelback", the tax was shifted to number of rooms, which equalized the taxation per square footage within a property.  Consequently, neither design contains closets or hallways, which were counted as rooms.
+The New Orleans housing taxation structure contributed to the design of the shotgun in its region. The shotgun utilized a minimized lot frontage, when taxes were based on lot frontage, then when that was subverted by untaxable second floor additions of space AKA the "Camelback", the tax was shifted to number of rooms, which equalized the taxation per square footage within a property.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Consequently, neither design contains closets or hallways, which were counted as rooms.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 [[File:Shoutgun House.jpg|thumb|right|A single shotgun in [[Little Rock, Arkansas]]]]
 [[File:Campground Historic District.JPG|thumb|right|A pair of single shotgun houses, dating to the 1920s, in the [[Campground Historic District]] of [[Mobile, Alabama]]]]
-Folklorist and professor John Michael Vlach has suggested that the origin of the building style and the name itself may trace back to Haiti and Africa in the 1700s and earlier. The name may have originated from the Africa's Southern [[Dahomey]] [[Fon people|Fon]] area term, to-gun, which means, "place of assembly." The description, probably used in New Orleans by Afro Haitian slaves, may have been misunderstood and reinterpreted as "Shotgun."<ref name="nh">Vlach, J: "Shotgun houses", pages 51–57. ''[[Natural History (magazine)|Natural History]]'' 86, 1977).</ref> Another, frequently repeated theory suggests that the term "shotgun" is a reference to the idea that if you open all the doors to the house, the pellets fired from a shotgun would fly cleanly from one end to the other (though the origin of this description is unknown).  Also a common understanding of the name is that they were built of discarded [[crate]]s, i.e. shotgun-shell and other crates.
+Folklorist and professor John Michael Vlach has suggested that the origin of the building style and the name itself may trace back to Haiti and Africa in the 1700s and earlier. The name may have originated from the Africa's Southern [[Dahomey]] [[Fon people|Fon]] area term, to-gun, which means, "place of assembly." The description, probably used in New Orleans by Afro Haitian slaves, may have been misunderstood and reinterpreted as "Shotgun."<ref name="nh">Vlach, J: "Shotgun houses", pages 51–57. ''[[Natural History (magazine)|Natural History]]'' 86, 1977).</ref> Another, frequently repeated theory suggests that the term "shotgun" is a reference to the idea that if you open all the doors to the house, the pellets fired from a shotgun would fly cleanly from one end to the other (though the origin of this description is unknown).  Also a common understanding of the name is that they were built of discarded [[crate]]s, i.e. shotgun-shell and other crates.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 The theory behind the earlier African origin is tied to the [[history of New Orleans]]. In 1803 there were 1,355 free blacks in the city.  By 1810 blacks outnumbered whites 10,500 to 4,500. This caused a housing boom.  As many of both the builders and inhabitants were Africans by way of Haiti, historians believe it is only natural they modeled the new homes after ones they left behind in their homeland. Many surviving Haitian dwellings of the period, including about 15 percent of the housing stock of [[Port-au-Prince]], resemble the single shotgun houses of New Orleans.<ref name="nh" /> A simpler theory is that is that they are the typical one-room-deep floor plan popular in  the rural south, rotated to accommodate narrow city lots.<ref name="mcalester">{{cite book|last=McAlester|first=Virginia & Lee|title=A Field Guide to American Houses|publisher=Knopf|location=New York|date=1997|page=90|isbn=0394739698}}</ref>
-The shotgun house was popularized in New Orleans.  The style was definitely built there by 1832, though there is evidence that houses sold in the 1830s were built 15 to 20 years earlier.<ref name="nh" /> The houses were built throughout hot [[urban area]]s in the [[Southern United States|South]], since the style's length allowed for excellent airflow, while its narrow frontage increased the number of lots that could be fitted along a street.  It was used so frequently that some southern cities estimate that, even today, 10% or more of their housing stock is composed of shotgun houses.<ref name="Burns">Burns, Richard Allen. ''The Shotgun Houses of Trumann, Arkansas'', Arkansas Review, (April 2002), Vol. 33, Issue 1</ref>
+The shotgun house was popularized in New Orleans.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} The style was definitely built there by 1832, though there is evidence that houses sold in the 1830s were built 15 to 20 years earlier.<ref name="nh" /> The houses were built throughout hot [[urban area]]s in the [[Southern United States|South]], since the style's length allowed for excellent airflow, while its narrow frontage increased the number of lots that could be fitted along a street.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} It was used so frequently that some southern cities estimate that, even today, 10% or more of their housing stock is composed of shotgun houses.<ref name="Burns">Burns, Richard Allen. ''The Shotgun Houses of Trumann, Arkansas'', Arkansas Review, (April 2002), Vol. 33, Issue 1</ref>
-The earliest known use of "shotgun house" as a name for these dwellings is in a classified advertisement in the ''[[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|Atlanta Journal Constitution]]'', August 30, 1903:  "Two 3-room houses near the railroad yards at Simpson st. crossing, rent $12 a month to good tenants who pay in advance; price $1,200 on terms or $100 cash, balance $15 a month; a combination of investment and savings bank:  these are not shacks, but good shot-gun houses in good repair."  While this advertisement seems to present shotgun houses as a desirable [[Working class|working-class]] housing alternative, by 1929 a Tennessee court noted that shotgun houses could not be rented to any other than a very poor class of tenants.<ref>''Moore v. Minnis'', 11 Tenn.App. 88 (Tenn. App. 1929).</ref>  After the [[Great Depression]], few shotgun houses were built, and existing ones went into decline. By the late 20th century, shotgun houses in some areas were being restored as housing and for other uses.<ref name="pres" />
+The earliest known use of "shotgun house" as a name for these dwellings is in a classified advertisement in the ''[[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|Atlanta Journal Constitution]]'', August 30, 1903:  "Two 3-room houses near the railroad yards at Simpson st. crossing, rent $12 a month to good tenants who pay in advance; price $1,200 on terms or $100 cash, balance $15 a month; a combination of investment and savings bank:  these are not shacks, but good shot-gun houses in good repair."{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}  While this advertisement seems to present shotgun houses as a desirable [[Working class|working-class]] housing alternative, by 1929 a Tennessee court noted that shotgun houses could not be rented to any other than a very poor class of tenants.<ref>''Moore v. Minnis'', 11 Tenn.App. 88 (Tenn. App. 1929).</ref>  After the [[Great Depression]], few shotgun houses were built, and existing ones went into decline. By the late 20th century, shotgun houses in some areas were being restored as housing and for other uses.<ref name="pres" />
 Shotgun houses were often initially built as rental properties, located near manufacturing centers or railroad hubs, to provide housing choices for workers. Owners of factories frequently built the houses to rent specifically to employees, usually for a few dollars a month.<ref name="pres" /> By the late 20th century, however, shotguns were often owner-occupied.  For example, 85% of the houses (many of them shotgun) in New Orleans' [[Lower Ninth Ward]] were owner-occupied.<ref name="Starr">Starr, S. Frederick. [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/22/garden/22shotgun.html ''The New Orleans Shotgun: Down but Not Out'']. [[The New York Times|New York Times]]. September 22, 2005. pg. F.7.</ref>
@@ Line 32: / Line 32: @@
 The rooms of a shotgun house are lined up one behind the other, typically a living room is first, then one or two bedrooms, and finally a kitchen in back. Early shotgun houses were not built with bathrooms, but in later years a bathroom with a small hall was built before the last room of the house, or a side addition was built off the kitchen.<ref name="pres" /> Some shotguns may have as few as two rooms.<ref>{{cite book|last=Marling|first=Karal Ann |title=Graceland |year=1996 |isbn=9780674358898 |publisher=Harvard University Press}}</ref>
-Chimneys tended to be built in the interior, allowing the front and middle rooms to share a chimney with a fireplace opening in each room. The kitchen usually has its own chimney.
+Chimneys tended to be built in the interior, allowing the front and middle rooms to share a chimney with a fireplace opening in each room. The kitchen usually has its own chimney.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
-Other than the basic floor layout, shotgun houses have many standard features in common. The house is almost always close to the street, sometimes with a very short front yard. In some cases, the house has no front yard and is actually flush with the [[sidewalk]]. The original steps were wood, but were often replaced with permanent concrete steps.
+Other than the basic floor layout, shotgun houses have many standard features in common. The house is almost always close to the street, sometimes with a very short front yard. In some cases, the house has no front yard and is actually flush with the [[sidewalk]]. The original steps were wood, but were often replaced with permanent concrete steps.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 [[Image:00003a.gif|left|thumb|Sketch of a typical camelback, or one and a half story, shotgun house, with a detailed sketch of a typical decorative wooden door bracket]]
-A sign of its New Orleans heritage, the house is usually raised two to three feet off the ground. There is a single door and window in the front of the house, and often a side door leading into the back room, which is slightly wider than the rest of the house. The front door and window often were originally covered by decorative shutters. Side walls may or may not have windows; rooms not adjoining the front nor back door will generally have at least one window even when the houses are built very close together.
+A sign of its New Orleans heritage, the house is usually raised two to three feet off the ground. There is a single door and window in the front of the house, and often a side door leading into the back room, which is slightly wider than the rest of the house. The front door and window often were originally covered by decorative shutters. Side walls may or may not have windows; rooms not adjoining the front nor back door will generally have at least one window even when the houses are built very close together.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 Typically, shotgun houses have a wood frame structure and wood siding, although some examples exist in brick and even stone. Many shotguns, especially older or less expensive ones, have flat roofs that end at the front wall of the house. In houses built after 1880, the roof usually overhangs the front wall, and there is usually a [[gable]] above the overhang. The overhang is usually supported by decorative wooden brackets, and sometimes contains [[cast iron]] ventilators.<ref>[http://bywater.org/about-bywater/architecture/shotgun-house/ Shotgun Houses on Architectural Patrimony]. ''bywater.org''; Bywater Neighborhood Association. New Orleans, [[LA]]. Accessed April 4, 2006.</ref>
@@ Line 48: / Line 48: @@
 [[Image:UptownCornerDoubleHouse.jpg|thumb|A double shotgun structure in the [[Uptown New Orleans|Uptown]] neighborhood of New Orleans. Double shotgun houses were a form of multiple-family housing, where essentially two conventional shotgun houses shared a central wall.]]
 [[Image:UptownShotgunCamelbackGarage.jpg|thumb|A classic camelback shotgun house in [[Uptown New Orleans]]]]
-A conventional one-story freestanding shotgun house is often called a single shotgun. Many common variations exist in high quantity, and are often actually more common than the single shotgun in cities.
+A conventional one-story freestanding shotgun house is often called a single shotgun. Many common variations exist in high quantity, and are often actually more common than the single shotgun in cities.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
-A double shotgun, also called double-barrel shotgun, is essentially two shotgun houses connected to each other and sharing a central wall. They are a form of [[Semi-detached]] housing. The double shotgun requires less land per household than the traditional shotgun and was used extensively in poorer areas because it could be built with fewer materials and use less land per occupant. It was first seen in New Orleans in 1854.<ref name="nh" />
+A double shotgun, also called double-barrel shotgun, is essentially two shotgun houses connected to each other and sharing a central wall. They are a form of [[Semi-detached]] housing.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} The double shotgun requires less land per household than the traditional shotgun and was used extensively in poorer areas because it could be built with fewer materials and use less land per occupant. It was first seen in New Orleans in 1854.<ref name="nh" />
 A camelback house, also called humpback, is a variation of the shotgun that has a partial second floor over the rear of the house. Camelback houses were built in the later period of shotgun houses. The floor plan and construction is very similar to the traditional shotgun house, except there are stairs in the back room leading up the second floor. The second floor, or "hump", contains one to four rooms. Because it was only a partial second story, most cities only taxed it as a single-story house - in fact this was a key reason for their construction.<ref name="holl">{{cite journal |author=Holl, Steven |title=Pamphlet Architecture 9: Rural and Urban House Types |journal=Princeton Architectural Press |year=November 1, 1995 |pages=34–39 |accessdate=2010-07-01 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=oAWkvAW4p_cC&lpg=PP1&dq=Rural%20and%20Urban%20House%20Types%20in%20North%20America&pg=PA34#v=onepage&q&f=false |isdn=0910413150}}</ref>
-The double width shotgun is where an extra large and wide shotgun house would be built on two lots instead of one. These were typically built one to a block in locations where a single person would first buy the entire [[city block]] during development, then build themselves a double sized home and then subdivide the rest of the block with single lot homes.
+The double width shotgun is where an extra large and wide shotgun house would be built on two lots instead of one. These were typically built one to a block in locations where a single person would first buy the entire [[city block]] during development, then build themselves a double sized home and then subdivide the rest of the block with single lot homes.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 "North shore" houses are shotgun houses with wide [[veranda]]s on three sides. They were so named because most were built on the north shore of New Orleans' [[Lake Pontchartrain]] as summer homes for wealthy whites.<ref name="nh" />
-The term may also refer to a different structure, common in [[rural]] areas and small towns, which takes the form of a small, long, free-standing house, generally made of wood, with no [[hallway]]s. Unlike the larger terraced version, this is generally a single-storied dwelling, but it was still associated with [[poverty]] and popular partially because of its ability to make hot weather more comfortable.  It was most prevalent along waterways and bayous in rural Louisiana.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Kniffen, Fred B.|journal=Annals of the Association of American Geographers|volume=26|issue=4|pages=179–193|title=Louisiana House Types|doi=10.2307/2569532|year=1936|url=http://jstor.org/stable/2569532|publisher=Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 26, No. 4}}</ref>
+The term may also refer to a different structure, common in [[rural]] areas and small towns, which takes the form of a small, long, free-standing house, generally made of wood, with no [[hallway]]s.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Unlike the larger terraced version, this is generally a single-storied dwelling, but it was still associated with [[poverty]] and popular partially because of its ability to make hot weather more comfortable.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} It was most prevalent along waterways and bayous in rural Louisiana.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Kniffen, Fred B.|journal=Annals of the Association of American Geographers|volume=26|issue=4|pages=179–193|title=Louisiana House Types|doi=10.2307/2569532|year=1936|url=http://jstor.org/stable/2569532|publisher=Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 26, No. 4}}</ref>
 A combination, the Double Camelback shotgun, also exists. A minor variation is a side door allowing access to the kitchen, or a porch along the side extending almost the length of the house.<ref name="pres" />
 ==Decline and legacy==
-The construction of shotgun houses slowed and eventually stopped during the early 20th century. The affordability of two technological innovations, the car and consumer [[air conditioning]] units, made the key advantages of the shotgun house obsolete to home buyers. After World War II, shotgun houses had very little appeal to those building or buying new houses, as car-oriented modern suburbs were built en masse. Few shotgun houses have been built in America since the war, although the concept of a simple, single-level floor plan lived on in [[ranch-style house]]s.<ref name="pres" />
+The construction of shotgun houses slowed and eventually stopped during the early 20th century. The affordability of two technological innovations, the car and consumer [[air conditioning]] units, made the key advantages of the shotgun house obsolete to home buyers.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} After World War II, shotgun houses had very little appeal to those building or buying new houses, as car-oriented modern suburbs were built en masse.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Few shotgun houses have been built in America since the war, although the concept of a simple, single-level floor plan lived on in [[ranch-style house]]s.<ref name="pres" />
 The surviving urban shotgun houses suffered problems related to those typically facing the [[inner city]] neighborhoods in which they were located. The [[white flight|flight]] of affluent residents to the suburbs, absentee owners, and a shortage of mortgage lenders for inner city residents led to the deterioration of shotgun houses in the mid and late 20th century. Confusing ownership, passed down within a family over several generations, also contributed to many houses sitting vacant for years.<ref name="pres" />
-Though shotguns are sometimes perceived as being housing prevalent in poor [[African American]] neighborhoods, many were originally built heavily in segregated white neighborhoods.  Many of these neighborhoods became predominantly black during the 1950s and 1960s, but many others did not and remain predominantly white.<ref name="Starr" />
+Though shotguns are sometimes perceived as being housing prevalent in poor [[African American]] neighborhoods, many were originally built heavily in segregated white neighborhoods.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Many of these neighborhoods became predominantly black during the 1950s and 1960s, but many others did not and remain predominantly white.<ref name="Starr" />
 [[File:Marigny14May07RampartYellowShotgun.jpg|thumb|A single shotgun in New Orlean's Faubourg Marigny neighborhood]]
 Regardless of who was living in them, from World War II until the 1980s, shotguns came to be widely viewed as substandard housing and a symbol of poverty, and they were demolished by many [[urban renewal]] projects. This thinking is no longer so prevalent, with cities such as [[Houston]] and [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]] establishing "Shotgun Historic Districts". Shotgun houses have even been praised as quality and cost-effective cultural assets that promote a distinctive urban life.<ref name="Starr" /> Other cities, such as [[Macon, Georgia]], experimented with renovating shotgun houses for low-income residents and, though split on whether it is cheaper to tear them down and build new housing,<ref>{{cite news|author=Duncan, S. Heather |title=Shotgun houses, rehabilitate or replace? |publisher=[[The Telegraph (Macon)|The Macon Telegraph]]| date=6 March 2006 |page=8 |quote= Some city planners and even residents themselves debate the value of preserving shotgun houses. This is partly because their architecture is more unassuming than that of [nearby] antebellum homes[...].  [Some said] 'There are very few houses that can't be rehabbed cheaper than building new. And when you tear down and rebuild, you've got to charge more in rent.' |format=Paywall |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=MT&s_site=macon&p_multi=MT&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=110B347A9E794CD0&p_field_direct-0=document_id}}</ref> some were rebuilt.<ref>{{cite news| publisher=Macon Telegraph |date=April 16, 2008 |page= A1 |title=Historic shotgun houses renovated in downtown Macon |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=MT&s_site=macon&p_multi=MT&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=120190F54E6C1F98&p_field_direct-0=document_id |format=Paywall |quote=Four renovated, century-old shotgun houses are expected to be completed by the end of the month[...]}}</ref>
-There are many large neighborhoods in older American cities of the south which still contain a high concentration of shotgun houses today.  Examples include [[Bywater, New Orleans|Bywater]] in [[New Orleans]]; [[Portland, Louisville|Portland]], [[Butchertown, Louisville|Butchertown]], and [[Germantown, Louisville|Germantown]] in [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]]; and [[Cabbagetown (Atlanta)|Cabbagetown]] in Atlanta.  Their role in the history of the south has become recognized; for example, in October 2001, [[Rice University]] sponsored an exhibition called "Shotguns 2001". This three-day event featured lectures on and artistic paintings of the houses, as well as presentations and panel discussions in a neighborhood of restored shotguns.
+There are many large neighborhoods in older American cities of the south which still contain a high concentration of shotgun houses today.  Examples include [[Bywater, New Orleans|Bywater]] in [[New Orleans]]; [[Portland, Louisville|Portland]], [[Butchertown, Louisville|Butchertown]], and [[Germantown, Louisville|Germantown]] in [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]]; and [[Cabbagetown (Atlanta)|Cabbagetown]] in Atlanta.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} Their role in the history of the south has become recognized; for example, in October 2001, [[Rice University]] sponsored an exhibition called "Shotguns 2001".{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} This three-day event featured lectures on and artistic paintings of the houses, as well as presentations and panel discussions in a neighborhood of restored shotguns.
 In some shotgun-dominated neighborhoods, property value has become quite high, leading to [[gentrification]]. Sometimes, a new owner will buy both homes of a double-barreled shotgun structure, and combine them to form a relatively large single house. Shotguns are also often combined to renovate them into office or storage space.<ref>{{cite news|first=Marty|last=Roney|publisher=Montgomery Advertiser|title=Old shotgun homes given new purpose|date=July 2, 2005|page=1}}</ref>
 ==A limited revival==
-Elements of the shotgun style have recently been seen in a number of the compact, low occupancy structures employed in the [[Solar Decathlon]] contests held in Washington, DC, periodically. While some are erected from panels brought to the site, many such structures consist of enclosed single or multiple units designed specifically for road transports, with multiple modules connected on site, and compact linear structures often employ multiple-use "zones" rather than specifically private areas, while retaining a linear progression of spaces.
+Elements of the shotgun style have recently been seen in a number of the compact, low occupancy structures employed in the [[Solar Decathlon]] contests held in Washington, DC, periodically. While some are erected from panels brought to the site, many such structures consist of enclosed single or multiple units designed specifically for road transports, with multiple modules connected on site, and compact linear structures often employ multiple-use "zones" rather than specifically private areas, while retaining a linear progression of spaces.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 ==Southern culture / Pop culture==
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 The shotgun house plays a role in the folklore and culture of the south. Superstition holds that [[ghost]]s and [[spirit]]s are attracted to shotgun houses because they may pass straight through them, and that some houses were built with doors intentionally misaligned to deter these spirits.<ref name="holl" /> They also often serve as a convenient symbol of life in the south. [[Elvis Presley]] was born in a shotgun house,<ref>{{cite book |author=Mason, Bobbie Ann |year= 2007 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=NqCQo9nqVHYC&pg=PA11&dq=Elvis+Presley+birthplace+shotgun+house&hl=en&ei=D4YvTND8I4SinQfG9MG1Aw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false |title=Elvis Presley: A Life |publisher=Penguin Books |page=11 |isbn=0143038893 |accessdate=2010-07-01}}</ref><ref>Marling, Karal Ann (Autumn 1993). ''Elvis Presley's Graceland, or the Aesthetic of Rock 'n' Roll Heaven'', American Art, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 72–105.</ref> the [[Neville Brothers]] grew up in one,{{failed verification}}<ref>{{cite journal |author=Arroyo, Raymond |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20071011021511/www.crisismagazine.com/september2001/feature5.htm |archivedate=2007-10-11 |title=The Devotion of Aaron Neville |journal=Crisis Magazine |month=September |year=2001 |url=http://www.crisismagazine.com/september2001/feature5.htm |date=2007-10-11 |accessdate=2010-06-15}}</ref> and [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]] is said to have died in one.{{failed verification}}<ref>Styles, Sean (2001). [http://www.nps.gov/history/delta/blues/sites/delta_sites.htm Trail of the Hellhound - Delta Blues in the Lower Mississippi Valley: Delta Sites], U.S. [[National Park Service]]. Retrieved April 4, 2006.</ref>  Shortly before his death in May 1997, [[Jeff Buckley]] rented a shotgun house in Memphis and was so enamoured with it he contacted the owner about the possibility of buying it.  ''Dream Brother'', David Browne's biography on Jeff and [[Tim Buckley]], opens with a description of this shotgun house and Jeff's fondness of it.<ref>Browne, David. [http://books.google.com/books?id=YGtvJlZX1qQC&dq=Dream+Brother:+The+Lives+and+Music+of+Jeff+and+Tim+Buckley&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=sy4YTIW1JYjWNvb0qKYL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q&f=false ''Dream Brother: The Lives and Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley'']. HarperEntertainment.  January, 2001. pg 1</ref>
-One of the more widely known references to a shotgun house was in the 1980 [[Talking Heads]] song "[[Once in a Lifetime (Talking Heads song)|Once In A Lifetime]]".  The first line of the song is "And you may find yourself living in a ''shotgun shack''".
+One of the more widely known references to a shotgun house was in the 1980 [[Talking Heads]] song "[[Once in a Lifetime (Talking Heads song)|Once In A Lifetime]]".  The first line of the song is "And you may find yourself living in a ''shotgun shack''".{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
 ==See also==