Black Walnut, Butternut, Sycamore

The characteristics of various American native woods such as black walnut, butternut, and sycamore.

¶ Other woods that are valuable for interior woodwork, although much less plentiful than those we have named, are black walnut, butternut, quartered sycamore and several other woods that come naturally into the same class.

Black Walnut

¶ Our American black walnut, although one of the standard woods in Europe, has been in a great measure spoiled for us because of its abuse during what we now speak of as the "black walnut period" which has come to mean over ornamentation, distorted shapes and general bad taste. We have no forests of black walnut left, but there are still single trees, so that if this wood is especially desired, it may be obtained without much difficulty.

Butternut

¶ The characteristics of butternut are much the same as those of black walnut, but it is rather lighter in color and not so hard.

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