The Cedar Shake Tradition on Cape Cod — And How to Preserve It

Few architectural landscapes in North America are as immediately recognizable as Cape Cod. The shingled cottages, the sloping rooflines, the silvered facades worn smooth by salt wind and decades of sun. Cedar shake siding has been woven into the Cape's identity since English settlers first began building along its shores in the 1600s, harvesting Atlantic white cedar from the peninsula's dense coastal forests to clad the modest, low-profile homes that would eventually define an entire American architectural style. Architectural historians at Historic New England have documented how the Cape Cod style, built largely on cedar's visual and structural properties, became one of the most imitated residential forms in the country.

Why Cedar Has Remained the Standard

Cedar's rich legacy in Cape Cod has carried directly into the present. Drive through Chatham, Wellfleet, or Dennis today and cedar shake remains the dominant exterior cladding choice across both historic and new construction. Real cedar shake carries a dimensional depth and organic irregularity that flat manufactured surfaces have long struggled to match. Each course of shingles has subtle variation in thickness, tone, and texture, and over time the material silvers into the muted, driftwood-grey patina that is as much a part of the Cape's visual character as the dunes and the harbour light. For homeowners building or renovating on the Cape, cedar shake signals craftsmanship, permanence, and a genuine connection to the region's architectural heritage. Historic preservation commissions across Barnstable County actively encourage its use, and many neighbourhood associations require or strongly prefer it. Cedar has outlasted nearly every alternative introduced over the past century through genuine aesthetic authority, and the demand for it shows no sign of fading.

Cedar shake on Cape Cod faces conditions that few other residential environments in the Northeast can match. Salt air, relentless humidity, hard winters, and intense summer UV exposure combine into a sustained assault on any exterior cladding, and cedar, as a porous and moisture-reactive material, bears the full weight of that exposure year after year.

Salt Air, Moisture, and the Maintenance Cycle

Salt air, persistent coastal humidity, freeze-thaw cycles, and intense summer UV exposure create conditions that accelerate cedar's natural deterioration far beyond what inland climates produce. Untreated cedar on the Cape will begin to show moisture damage, mold, and surface checking within a few years of installation. Maintaining structural integrity and preserving appearance requires chemical treatment or re-staining roughly every three to five years, a process that is neither inexpensive nor straightforward on a home with complex rooflines or difficult access.

Seasonal Vacancy and Neglect Windows

A large proportion of Cape Cod homes sit vacant for four to six months of the year. Cedar does its worst deteriorating during exactly those periods, when freeze-thaw cycling, moisture accumulation, and pest activity go unmonitored and unaddressed.

Insurance and Coverage Challenges

Cedar's lower fire rating and storm vulnerability increasingly make it difficult to insure at standard rates in coastal Massachusetts, where carriers have been tightening underwriting criteria for older and high-value homes.