Smokehouse

[2] Prior to the widespread availability of mains electricity and freezers, meat was preserved by heavy salting.

Hogs were slaughtered after the onset of cold weather, and hams and other pork products were salted and hung up or placed on a shelf to last into the following summer.

Whether the meat should be smoked as well as salted is personal preference, frequently backed up with strong local or family custom.

[citation needed] Traditionally, a smokehouse is a small enclosed outbuilding often with a vent, a single entrance, no windows, and frequently has a gabled or pyramid-style roof.

[3] As a preserved ham represents a big financial investment, smokehouses in the Carolinas and Virginia can frequently be identified by their framing, so closely spaced as to prevent forcible entry and theft.