What are ship knees?
The term “knee” refers to a section of a tree where the trunk meets the root. The wood in this section of a tree is called “tension wood” because it grows against the stresses of nature’s elements. Because of their great strength, knees are widely used for bracing and structural elements in ships and boats as well as homes, barns, timber frames, and furniture. Examples of ship knees can be found in the Morneault house at the Acadian Village in Van Buren, Maine.
