SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) - Before building permits made it difficult for the average person to cut down trees and build their own cabins, the humble dogtrot home was one of the most popular folk architecture styles in Northwest Louisiana. But dogtrots were more than mere buildings. Dogtrot design was actually a primitive form of off-grid air conditioning. Named "dogtrots" because a dog (or even a chicken) could run through the middle of the house without ever being inside of the home's living quarters, dogtrots were popular homes in the American South until the end of the 19th century. Drawing of dogtrot house by KTAL/KMSS' Jaclyn Tripp. Usually made of logs, simple dogtrot homes could be built by settlers in mere weeks. The air gaps between the logs were often filled with clay. Dogtrots have gone by many names in the American South, such as possum trots, turkey trots, dog runs, and cracker houses. The design may be a descendant of colonial central hall houses, though similar designs that predate the dogtrot have been discovered in Central America. Dogtrots, for the most part, were often built by early settlers, rural homesteaders, and sharecroppers in the American South. The floor plan of a typical dogtrot in Mississippi during the mid-19th century. (Source: The View From the Porch: Households and Community Change in Rural Mississippi, by Susan Ditto.) But don't let the simplistic design of dogtrot homes fool you. Modern studies have begun to prove that a great deal of intellect went into the creation of dogtrot designs. Students at Mississippi State University have now proven, using dogtrot home models inside of a wind tunnel, that wind speeds inside of a central "dogtrot" hallway are faster than windspeeds found outside of dogtrot homes. The Bernoulli principle is the cause of the increased windspeeds in dogtrot hallways. Dogtrots were some of the most popular home styles built by early settlers in Northwest Louisiana after the Louisiana Purchase. The homes had a long, open-aired hallway (almost like a central porch) that divided rooms on opposing sides of the structure. Chimneys were typically located on the gable ends of dogtrot homes in NWLA, though chimney construction materials varied. Dogtrot home in rural Northwest Louisiana under renovation in 2018. (Source: KTAL/KMSS' Jaclyn Tripp) Many dogtrots had detached kitchens because of fire risk associated with wood-burning cooking stoves. "At its core, the dog trot house has a perfect air-conditioning system," wrote Howard W. Marshall in Dog Trot Comfort: A Note on Traditional Houses and Energy Efficiency. "By channeling breezes through the central hallways, the architecture relies on nature--not mechanical contrivances--to cool the interior." Marshall also wrote that doors and windows throughout dogtrot homes could be opened to pull air from the central hallway throughout the house. After the invention of air conditioning, new home designs became more appealing (and more comfortable) to Southerners, and knowledge concerning the brilliance behind dogtrot design was nearly erased from history. Sources: Shotgun and Dogtrot" by Terry Pebworth, Ford Times, Jan. 1956 Dog Trot Comfort: A Note on Traditional Houses and Energy Efficiency, by Howard W. Marshall, Smithsonian Institute The View From the Porch: Households and Community Change in Rural Mississippi, by Susan Ditto Dogtrot House | Mississippi Encyclopedia