Expert: John Henry Architect - 2/22/2009

Question
QUESTION: Hi I can't seem to have anyone answer a question about 2 steel rods that are in my walls one on one side of the house from the cellar to the attic, and one on the other.  They are bolted from on beam on the bottom (visible in the cellar, and bolted to a beam running horizontal in the attic.  I hav had construction people telling me everything from "its there to keep the roof down", to "its there to keep the roof up". I seek to cut them at the floor to remodel the attic. Any idea why there were put there originally? The attic has all huge post and beams in a hip roof design and doesn't look like it needs any help from these 2 inch thick rods.I'd appreciate any help here. Thanks So Much....Steve Capaldi

ANSWER: This is a structural engineering question but I will offer some possible rationale for these rods.
I take it this may be a brick or stone house built in 1875.
If it is a two story home, these are probably bolted to limit any type of movement in the walls for structural reasons.  These types of rods have been used vertically and horizontally in many historic structures, essentially to keep walls from collapsing due to lack of lateral bracing.  They normally are included in the original construction but can also be inserted for later 'fixes'.
The builder may have done this to insure that the walls would not crack possibly due to a weak foundation.
The bolts and rods may not have been in the house originally and possibly several years after it was finished, 50 years let's say, the owner noticed slight or major cracks in the wall plaster or on the outside veneer.
If it has a stucco finish now, the cracks may be covered from view, and the inside replastered.
If the foundation moved, the floors may not be level either and the rods could have been introduced to keep differential movement contained.
If this is a row house with adjoining walls to neighboring property, the rods might have been added as a precaution against failure or movement from abutting walls.
In hurricane prone areas this would have made sense to keep the roof on as metal straps now connect the roof to walls to foundation.
My guess is that your foundation may have shifted at one time and the rods were inserted to stabilize the walls above the foundation.  Since these weren't employed on a regular grid it may have been simply a fix.
I would not cut them out unless a structural engineer gave you a green light.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks so much for the unbelievably fast response!  It is a large Victorian with no apparent foundation problems, or shifting.  One structural engineer stated that he thought that our roof had originally had slate and that these were put in to keep the roof up! I appreciate all your help. I think I should probably get more oppinions and have another engineer come over. Thanks Again!!!  Steve Capaldi

Answer
a large Victorian roof means much weight bearing down on your walls. The actual forces involved would imply that the outer walls would need to be kept from moving outwards and so the rods should have been installed horizontally rather than vertically.  
If the house is all wood frame I can only guess that this must have been a common practice, a sort of insurance, if original to the house. If the rods were installed afterwards there were either signs of bending in structural members or cracking of interior plaster that might have warranted this type of bracing.