Thatch is a combo of materials including dried grass, reeds, and straw. Archeological evidence in the UK suggests that thatching was used as far back as the Neolithic period, around 4000 BC. By the Middle Ages, thatching materials changed a little but thatching as a roofing material was a very common roofing material in this time period. Straw, water reed, and combed wheat reed were used to construct roofs but in the late 1600s, the Great Fire of London led to new building regulations that prohibited the use of thatch in London and other densely populated areas. In the 18th century, thatching techniques and materials evolved and the introduction of the spar and the sway used to secure layers of thatch enhanced its durability. By the 19th century, thatching as a roofing material had decreased drastically due to alternative roofing materials such as slate and clay tiles and the expansion of the railroad system made materials more accessible. And in terms of safety, stone and tile have greater fire resistance compared to thatch. Thatch is still used today in roofs and now fire-resistant treatments, ventilation systems, and more durable materials such as reed and combed wheat straw can be used.

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In early residences, home builders noticed the benefit of a sloped roof over a flat one in directing rain. It is said that the sloping roof was created before roofing tiles by many centuries. The use of stone, bark, straw, thatch, and rough stones were used until better products were created with the introduction of clay roofing tiles which are the most common form in use in the world today. Most natural stones crumble but burned hard clay will not decay. We don’t know for 100% sure where the beginning of roofing tiles started, but some believe it was in China. In early literature, terra-cotta roofing tiles were described – the roofing tiles were found in the ruins of the Temple of Hera at Olympia (in Greece). The ancient tile had 2 elements, there was a wide piece that was slightly curved and a narrow semi-cylindrical piece which was inverted to cover the upturned edges. Historical finds have shaped what we know about early roofs and construction as well as literature, paintings, art, drawings, and other reference points. Early roof construction worked marble and tiles which were made after the terra-cotta tiles.

In America, Colonies adhere to the same form of roofing – Flat tile made in Pennsylvania can be to traced back to German settlers. There was a pan tile discovered on a home built in the late 1660s on the Delaware River. In 1814, Germantown has been indicated as the site of the first roofing tile manufacturer. The process was labor intensive and took a great deal of time to create them by hand. In 1871, J.B. Hughes patented roofing tiles of interlocking design and a machine designed to make the tiles on a commercial scale. In the early days of the 1800s in the US roofers would lay fabric in place and coat the fabric with a sticky substance like pine tar. In the 1840s, heavy paper was used with pine tar and sprinkled with sand.  By the late 1840s, coal tar was being used instead of pine tar since it was less expensive and was a byproduct of the gas light industry. In the 1860s and the growth of the petroleum industry created an abundant source of asphalt that could be used instead of coal tar in roofing. By the late 1890s, roofing was made using cotton-based rag felts which were saturated with petroleum asphalt and surfaced with slate chips. These roofs led to the creation of asphalt shingles.

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