In Glencoe, as in other Alamance County villages, the Holts built many substantial two-story houses for workers. Resembling local farmhouses, most were framed with hand-sawn timbers joined with pegs, and some had brick nogging between the timbers for insulation. These houses contained four to six rooms for families that sometimes included ten or more members, with two rooms on each floor and a central hallway on the first floor. Originally, detached kitchens stood in the back yards, following a typical Southern practice that separated cooking heat and the threat of fire from the main house. In the 20th century, some kitchens were added as rear ells, and privies stood in the back yards.