Widow's walk

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A widow's walk (orroofwalk) 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.

Also beyond their usage as viewing platforms they are frequently built around the chimney of the residence creating an easy access route to the chimney allowing the residents of the home to pour sand down burning chineys which would otherwise continue to burn the house down unchecked.