cord

See also: firewood

In the United States and England, 14th century–present, a unit of capacity used for fuel wood, a pile 4 feet deep, 8 feet long, and 4 feet high, = 128 cubic feet, approximately 3.62 cubic meters. The name is believed to come from the practice of measuring the quantity of wood in a pile by measuring its circumference with a cord. Compare the German Faden.

In England there were many local variations in the size of this unit, both larger (Derbyshire, 1800: 162½ cubic feet) and smaller (Gloustershire, 1800: 8 feet 4 inches long, 4 feet 4 inches high, and 2 feet 2 inches deep = 78 cubic feet). Hayes (1740, page 207) describes two cords, the usual one, and one called the "14 Foot Cord, ...14 Feet in length, 3 Feet in breadth, and 3 Feet in the height," which is 126 cubic feet. Perhaps the slightly small contents compensated the seller for the additional labor needed to saw 3-foot lengths instead of 4.

Simmonds states that a cord contains 1000 billets or four loads.

Most modern fireplaces cannot accept logs 4 feet long; individual bolts are typically 15 or 16 inches long. In the United States, a face cord is also 8 feet long and 4 feet high, but only one bolt's length deep, making it one-third of a cord. One-third of a cord is also sometimes called a fireplace cord, stove cord, rick, or rank. A full cord made of 16-inch bolts is 4 feet high and 24 feet long. See firewood.

A cord-foot = 16 cubic feet = ¹⁄₈ cord.

Sources

"...a pile of wood or bark four feet wide, four feet high, and eight feet long, well packed, shall constitute a cord."

Vermont law of 1855