Sheep Wagons
While living in an area populated by people from the Basque region, some residents around the Reno/Lake Tahoe area will sometimes catch a glimpse of a sheepherder, his sheep and his home in the high desert: a small trailer or sheep wagon.
My post on the gypsy caravans was popular, so I thought I would do a post on the classic (and contemporary) sheep wagon.
Sheep wagons are usually about 7 to 8 feet wide and about 12 to 16 feet long. Inside the wagon is usually room for one bed or bunks, a small stove, sink and cooking area, storage for clothes and an eating area. Most sheep wagons do not have bathrooms or showers.
Old Western Wagons
Sheep wagons are more of an American West style and the gypsy caravan is more of a European style. The sheep wagon has a curved roof supported by hoops and looks more like a covered wagon. The roof can be made from heavy duty cloth or wood. I have even seen a few with tin or corregated metal roofs.
Several companies in the U.S. convert old wagons or build new wagons for vacation homes and retreats or backyard offices and country cabins. There are also a few books with great photos and information on sheep wagons including Portable Houses by Irene Rawlings and Mary Abel and Retreats by G. Lawson Drinkard III.
Old Western Wagons
Old Western Wagons
Old Western Wagons
Old Point Reyes Campground Shepherd's Wagon
Stay in a Shepherd’s Wagon in Point Reyes
Story from Mother Earth News on living in a sheep wagon
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8 Responses to “Sheep Wagons”
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Have you come across the British version, Shepherd’s huts? There was an article in The Telegraph which gives an inro to them:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/4386003/Shepherds-huts-are-the-new-country-accessory.html
Thanks Stephen for the great link! Since I focused on gypsy caravans in Europe the last time, I thought I would give the American version their due. But in the future I would love to do more research on these cute little Shepherd’s Huts!
[...] list of sheep wagon builders if you’d like to learn more about buying or building one. Visit Tiny House Blog for the complete story. You might also be interested in reading more about Shepard Huts in the [...]
[...] Sheep Wagons [...]
[...] For more information on shepherd’s huts or sheep wagons, read this Tiny House Blog post [...]
Hi
I am looking for a set of plans to build a full sized sheep wagon or a full sized covered wagaon…
I loved your tiny houses
Thank you
Dee Pauley
[...] Sheep Wagons [...]
attention sheep wagon fans!
please take a look at our project to redesign the sheep wagon:
http://www.m12studio.org/campito.html
a portion of our research will be on display at the biennial of the americas in denver this july(2010).
http://www.biennialoftheamericas.org/citywide-exhibitions