From the Editors

An experienced carpenter and talented writer, Nash traces the evolution of the American wooden fence from Colonial times to the present. He discusses the various types of fences, and explains how to design a fence to meet every conceivable need - including how to be a good neighbor. Everything you need to know to build a fence is here, from laying out the fence to digging postholes, anchoring the posts, and installing gates and fence boards. There's even a trouble-shooting guide for maintenance and repair.
Product Description

Customer Response

A Great Cure For Insomnia, but Still An Excellent Resource
I bought this book as I had about 250 feet of fencing to put around my yard that needed to look good as well as keep kids and a large dog in.

I am no Bob Vila, but I can hold my own when it comes to building things and home improvements. I purchased this book looking for idea on unique infill ideas, designs, and patterns. I was looking to built something different, but tasteful enough to fit in with yuppie suburbia.

If you need a good guide on how to build a fence, history of fencing, or how to repair a fence, this is an excellent resource. The author does a wonderful job explaining how to build a fence from beginning to end. He goes over many considerations including boundary lines, neighbors, the purpose of the fence, budgets, and pretty much anything else you can think of. The book contains some beautiful photos of fence designs, common fence problems, and photos/drawings on the actual construction of the fence.

The one weak point of this book is the area of the infill (essentially the area between the fence posts). I was looking for design ideas and patterns. However, this book gave next to nothing when it came to patterns or how to build certain infill designs. As I said before, there are some beautiful photos of some really cool fence designs, but very little guidance on how to actually build that portion of the fence.

I would highly recommend the book to the building novice who is not very familiar with construction and/or fence building techniques. The book is an excellent resource on building a fence and can be a invaluable resource to your project. I thought I knew what I was doing yet I still learned quite a bit. The book reads much like a text book and is about as fun to read as the dictionary. If you are familiar with how to build a fence and are looking for design ideas, I'd pass on this book.

A must for newbie and seasoned fence builders!
My husband and I have found this book to be most helpful with ideas and step by step instructions. We do not want a fence that looks like every body else's. This book could be a coffee table book it is so beautifully illustrated!

Excellent reference book
Provides a wide range of answers to common and not so common questions regarding building fences.

I fell for the other reviews - again.
This book offers a nice glimpse at some very basic traditional fences. It's mostly a guided pictoral journey showing some colonial, old traditional and farmland fencing - NOTHING remotly contemporary.

NOT PRACTICAL for someone looking for a reference of fence designs or construction techniques. Sure the author gives good information about basic design factors but does not offer much help to develop and build a finished product.

A great book if you have some time to kill and you enjoy hearing about and looking at pictures of old-fashined fences. - Mine's going back to Amazon in exchange for something more practical. In fact, I wish Amazon would do a better job in reviewing these books to save me a lot of time.

Beautiful, Informative Book for Planning & Building a Fence
George Nash's writing, with the aid of former National Geographic photographer James P. Blair, expounds on the history and great variety of fences. Although primarily about wooden fences, he does touch on rock, iron and wire fences in the discussion of the history of fencing.

Nash points out the many reasons for fencing, from the practical to the ornamental and how each type may be designed and constructed. He explains the reasoning and functionality of purpose-built fences very clearly.

There is also great technical detail, from how to pick materials to how to layout and set fence posts. There are clear diagrams of common fence joinery and shop tips for making the various components. Do's and don'ts in design are pointed out. Repairs and maintenance are also discussed.

Although there are no measured drawings, the aspect ratio of the "golden rectangle" is presented to aid you in making an attractive, as well as functional, fence. The rich plethora of color photographs and clear diagrams depicting an incredible variety of designs will inspire, or perhaps confound you, with ideas to build your own fence.

The only problem with this book is that there are so many great ideas, it's hard to pick just one!

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