a lookout atop a coastal house
A deck on top of a flat roof usually enclosed by a balustrade, frequently made of cast iron. Widow's walks once had a practical purpose and were used frequently on seaside houses. The lady of the house could go to the roof to see which ships had arrived in the harbor. If her husbands ship never returned, she knew she was a widow, thus the name.
Narrow platform on roof; usually with wooden or wrought-iron balustrade
A deck atop a flat roof or jutting out of sloped roof. It received its name from its use by wives waiting in watch for missing sailors and seamen.
Historically, a platform on a roof from which the wives of colonial New England seamen could watch for their return.
A small, railed observation platform atop a house. Once used to scout for seamen, such walks are usually square, done in elaborately-worked wrought iron or wood.
Platform erected on a roof in some New England homes having a view of the sea. It was said widows of lost seaman would walk on the platform looking out at sea for their husbands to return from sea.
A platform with a rail around it, built onto the roof of a house. The platform is accessible by stairs or a ladder from the interior of the house. See Plan #10433 for an example.
a small, railed observation platform built out from the roof. Once used to scout for returning ships, such walks are usually square, done in elaborately-worked wrought iron or wood.
A widow's walk (or roofwalk) is a railed rooftop platform, typically on a coastal house, originally designed to observe vessels at sea. The name comes from the wives of mariners who would watch for their spouses to return. In some instances, the ocean took the lives of the mariners, leaving the women as widows; who would often thereafter gaze out to sea wishing beyond hope that their loved ones would return home and hence the name widow's walk was born.