In 1638 along the Delaware River Valley, some of the first log cabin homes were built. The area include parts of Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

The log cabin had a square or rectangular shape that was fast and simple to build. It was small in size usually having one large room with a second floor loft. Only a few tools were necessary and no nails were needed to build a log cabin.

The forests were full of strong trees that were used to make the logs. At the corners the logs were notched together. This made the log cabin strong. If you ever built a log cabin with the toy, Lincoln Logs, it is very similar to how the log cabins were built. Sometimes a thick muddy material was used to fill in the openings between the logs to keep out the wind, snow, and rain.

Many of the first log cabins had thatched roofs. Later they were made out of wood. A thatched roof was made with twigs, grass, straw, reeds, and mud. Many times the cabin had only one small window and a stone chimney.