Some folks have taken the tiny house approach to a big house, making one roomsized cabin at a time and then roofing them all over into a compound of whatever proportions they want.

Our family-forebears had/have a camp like that which began as a winter-included total living space the size of a small bathroom in today's houseplanning.... A g-?-uncle was sent there for TB, went there and logged the uprights in late Fall, covered them with storebought lumber for a coupla bucks (1800's) in time for winter, and lived there for years-- even after a bear he shot didn't expire but mauled him... That original cabin now houses the bathroom. The second one built, adjoining, is now the kitchen. As the family grew over time, additional cabins were built stand-alone and then roofing was extended to make a series of snug "dog-porches" (breezeways) connecting them all. And there are other "cabins" in that area just like it but, of course, each one is unique.

The unifying design feature is that each cabin is NOT added onto, like we would "bump out" a house nowadays for an addition. Build a second cabin then connect them.

THere are a lot of long-empty motels in this area that look to have been made the same or were about to when they went outta business. Wheneer I poass one of those series-of-room-cabins now, I want to move them together, roof them over, and move in. Except I know that they're rotten in the foundations.

In my coffeetable book, one example they show is elaborate but tiny chalet-style cabins (Catskills???) originally built for summer occupancy. The foundations were built on runners that allowed them to be moved as winter ground-heaving or changing resort layout dictated. They'd hitch them to draft horses and just slide them where wanted them.

A chicken coop next door we used for awhile was built that way-- till a tenant with gasoline thought it oughtta be gone. He never knew he couldda just slid it over into our yard-- the landlord no doubt would have been happy to bring the tractor over to do it.... but we came home one day to find the idjit tenant had already half-burnt it. Nice coop, too-- we'd raised rabbits in it. People in this area live in places like that, too, still.

~Susan