Details in Delaware: The ‘security step’
“Details in Delaware” is a history-informed collaboration between Kara A. Briggs, an architectural historian with the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs (HCA) State Historic Preservation Office, and Desiree May, HCA’s social media lead, to bring some interesting Delaware history facts and preservation information to the forefront.
The idea is to showcase the diversity of what the Division does, while also highlighting unique architectural features and landmarks to educate the public. Check out more interesting details like these by visiting HCA on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!
The security step: Fact or fiction?
The “security step” may be found on a staircase in an older home where the top riser is significantly shorter than the rest. This last short step is commonly called a security step and is explained as a means of tripping any burglar or person unfamiliar to the home attempting to sneak upstairs.
Historians have speculated and theorized that the installation of a shorter step as a means of an early security system was not intentional. Explanations include, but are not limited to, leaving a top stair riser 3/4-inch (or more) shorter than other risers to accommodate a hardwood floor installation on the upper floor at a later date, or that the shorter step is the result of an unskilled carpenter lacking the mathematical aides to craft staircase with perfectly even risers.