Peeking out of the Cob house. We all had fun getting dirty. The making of our Cob house. Everyone had a great time building the Cob house.

The Harding Family Cob House

The cob playhouse was completed in the Fall of 2007 by community children, motivated volunteers, and our program coordinator, Kendall Lewis.  The structure was formed by using sand, clay and straw.  It will be used by children attending NIC Head Start at the Harding Family Center. 

This project would not have been possible without the support of Dave Harland, Doug Fagerness, Eric Fauskin, Paul and Julie VanMiddlesworth and many others.

What is cob?
The term “cob” is derived from Old English, meaning a lump or rounded mass. Cob construction is also known as Earthen Architecture.
It is house sculpting, by hand, using a mixture of wet clay, sand and straw. Cob uses locally available materials mixed into a dough-like consistency to sculpt walls up to two feet thick.

Cob is a “do-it-yourself” method of sustainable building, using cheap materials. It is easy to learn and do, creates no pollution or disposal problems, and is energy efficient and non-flammable. It has been used around the world to create beautiful buildings that stand the test of time. Materials are natural and ecologically sustainable.

Earthen architecture is particularly suited for this area because of its unique natural environment.

Cob was one of the first building methods used by humans, and has persisted all over the world – currently, roughly 1/3 of the world population lives in earthen houses!